The Peaks We Climb
by XIIIth Hazard
Summary: (Part: 8) – With Shredder running them into a corner and the Barron getting closer and closer every second; the Turtles decide it's time to take the fight to them. But have they over-played their hand? Turtle-Verse/Alternate Dimension. (Sequel: to 'The Loads We Bear.')
1. Prologue

Check out my profile page for the correct order in which to read this series.

(Starting with The Walls We Build)

For everyone that's already in the know, here's Part 8

* * *

 _The Peaks We Climb_

Prologue:

( _Donnie's POV_ )

I was still in a dazed state several minutes later as I continued to search the area, from a knelt position, for any sign of Karai or Zero, until I looked up to find Zira walking over to crouch in front of me.

"You okay?" She asked simply, but I just shook my head and she gave a little nod in agreement. "We're really a couple pees in a pod, aren't we?" I couldn't but smile a little as the irony of that statement sank in.

It already felt like a lifetime since that moment on Kale's ship when _I_ had been the one comforting her after the discovery that her own brother was responsible for the destruction of her clan.

"I called Leo." Raph announced quietly as he walked up. "He doesn't want ya anywhere near Zero until we know for sure what's goin' on here." I nodded in agreement to that, but Zira wasn't so open to discussion.

"We can't just _sit_ here and do _nothing_." She argued sternly.

"No, he's right," I countered. "For all we know, Shredder could have had these memories _planted_ in my mind to throw us off course. I can't afford to get too close to this – I'm a _liability_."

"Yu're _never_ a liability, Don." Raph informed me immediately, causing Zira to speak up as well.

"He's right," She added simply and I turned to look at them with a raised eye-ridge.

"Okay – nothing scares me more then when you two _agree_ on something." I stated before moving to get to my feet.

"So what do ya want ta do?" Raph asked as I stood at my full height and turned to look at him seriously.

"I _can't_ just do nothing, I need _closure_." I answered sternly and he nodded.

"Then let's _find_ 'em." He proclaimed, causing Zira to look between us in confusion.

"Wait a minute," She ordered dryly. "I thought your leader just told you to _wait_?"

"You obviously didn't _hear_ me," Raph countered as if talking of the weather. "Leo never said we _couldn't_ go lookin', just that he didn't _want_ us ta."

"Wait – what?" She proclaimed in bewilderment and I smiled before explaining further.

"There's something about Leo you need to be aware of, Zira." I put in seriously, causing the woman to look at me again. "What makes him such a great _leader_ ; is that he's always our _brother_ first."

"And that makes a difference?" She asked simply and I nodded.

"All the difference in the world."

…

Despite his unspoken agreement, Leo was still _furious_ when we called to tell him that we'd located Karai and Zero's hiding place about an hour later, but he got over it and informed us that they would be there as soon as they could.

"I swear; you guys have the most _confusing_ family in existence." Zira proclaimed as I returned my phone to my pocket and Raph scoffed in amusement before answering.

"Not true," He countered with a smile. " _We're_ the _sane_ ones here; it's everyone _else_ that's crazy."

"Oh – of course," She proclaimed mockingly with a grin in his direction and I rolled my eyes at their newfound _friendship_ – or whatever they called it.

"Would you two mind moving this sap-fest to another area, you're dripping syrup on my foot?" I informed them sarcastically, immediately receiving two very unhappy glares in the process.

"Are you _always_ this cynical?" Zira proclaimed in annoyance.

"Have you looked around you lately?" I countered calmly. "When one grows up in a world like _this_ , it's the only way to open your mouth without _screaming_."

"True," She agreed solemnly as she turned to look at the building where we had tracked Karai and Zero; which was one that we'd become quite familiar with, as it was the _same_ abandoned hotel where we had hidden while trying to escape the same people we were now looking for.

It was moments like this that I wish I had been born a sponge, for being a turtle was far more complicated than I ever would have though possible.

"Well, shall we?" Raph put in and I nodded before leading the way over to the front entrance and walked into the run-down, somewhat flooded reception lounge. "Okay, any idea where ta start?" He added as he looked around the room as well.

"I have a guess," I informed him distractedly before heading for the stairs and started up into the building. We had to jump over a few gaps in the floors and had a few close calls when some of the wooden planks proved that they no longer had the strength to hold our weight, but we eventually made it to the level I was looking for and carefully walked down the hall until finding the room I wanted.

"Wait a minute – this is the same room we camped out in before." Zira piped up truthfully.

"So, they knew where we were the whole time?" Raph added and I shrugged.

"I really don't know," I admitted as I reached out to push the door open and quietly walked in to have a look around.

"There's no one here." My brother put in as they followed me.

"No – he's here," I corrected, though I wasn't able to _sense_ their presence as much as I could _smell_ it. "He's probably lost a lot of energy so the bubble won't be very big or strong."

"What _bubble_?" Zira asked in confusion, but I chose not to answer for now.

"Just look for anything out of the ordinary, and tell me if you find _stale air_." I ordered and continued to carefully make my way around the apartment, taking in every little piece of information in an attempt to find something that _technically_ wasn't even there.

"Don!" Raph called to me quietly after several minutes of searching and I quickly moved over to stand next to him as he pointed me into the far corner of one of the bedrooms, where we could clearly see a _bulge_ in the air, like something had been badly _photo_ - _shopped_ out of the image.

"That's him," I said calmly as Zira joined us as well. "We need to be _cautious_ , he's very protective of Karai and he might not have _healed_ her yet."

"I'm just goin' _pretend_ I know what yu're talkin' about." Raph proclaimed sourly as I carefully moved over to the corner in question, making sure not to touch the bubble as I didn't want to appear threatening or unintentionally break the loop.

"Zero?" I asked the space kindly, knowing that he could hear me even though I couldn't see him. "Please, come out," I added gently, cautiously moving a step closer.

However, this turned out to be a bad idea on my part, as it seemed to put me within _range_ , causing him to suddenly appear out of thin air to take me to the ground in a tackle as his time-loop dropped behind him.

The first thing I noticed, after the fuzz of hitting my head against the ground passed, was that he had abandoned his helmet, which was likely to keep Shredder from tracking them down, but it also allowed me to really see him for the first time and I realized immediately that I hadn't been wrong.

I _knew_ those scars, they had been _injuries_ the last time I'd seen them, but they were all exactly how I remembered, all exactly how I saw them every time I closed my eyes for the first several years of my life.

"Donnie!" I heard Raph call as I looked up into my lost brother's eyes and I quickly held up my hand to stop him from interrupting.

"Stay there, Raph," I told him sternly. "He's not gonna hurt me." I added noticing how Zero's hands _shook_ as he continued to hold my throat, though not so hard that he was choking me.

"It's okay," I started again, carefully reaching up to lay my hand over his. "I'm not gonna hurt her, I just want to _help_." This caused him to lean down and actually touch his forehead to mine and I quietly remained still, allowing him to do whatever he wanted in his attempt to figure out if I was to be trusted.

" _Tokka_ ," A weak voice suddenly interrupted and he turned to look behind him as Karai attempted to sit up, before he quickly rushed over to stop her, thus allowing Raph to do the same and helped me back to my feet.

"What's going on?" Karai asked in a panic as I took in the state of her injury. It wasn't as bad as it had been before and my bio-foam had held securely, but she was obviously suffering from some internal damage and likely _shock_. "Who's here?"

I tried to get closer to help, but Zero promptly snapped his beak shut in warning and I stopped. "I know you're scared," I told him kindly. "But I can _help her_. Please Zero – she's gonna _die_."

I didn't mean to distress him even more, as in response to my words he quickly leaned down to rub his beak into her neck, as if begging her not to leave, but I took the distraction for what it was and carefully moved closer again, this time actually getting near enough to touch her, only to once again be attacked, however this time it was by Karai herself.

I had to admit I was impressed by how steady her sword was when the blade suddenly materialized at my throat, and she proceeded to glare at me as if trying to see through a fog.

" _Leonardo_?" She asked in confusion.

"No, it's Donatello," I corrected her. "Leo's coming."

"Are you here to capture us?" She countered quickly.

"No," I answered truthfully. "I just want to help." I added again.

"I don't believe you." She proclaimed seriously.

"You don't _have_ to." I informed her as I carefully reached up to move her sword away from my face and laid my hand over her wound to get a feel for the injury, before removing my bag from my back.

"I'm going to give you something for shock." I continued purposefully as I replaced my usual thought process with the side of my mind that didn't _see_ the person before me or _feel_ the panic; only the injuries and only the resolution.

It wasn't a place in my soul I liked to visit, but there was a _reason_ doctors were forbidden from operating on family members, and given that three of the people I cared about most were also three of my usual _patients_ ,this state of mind was often _required_ to keep my sanity.

Thankfully, she seemed to understand that she was in no position to complain, though I wasn't sure if it was because I might be the only one able to save her life or because Raph continued to closely monitor her every move, to insure she didn't do anything stupid.

Zero continued to stay close by, but out-of-the-way as he held her hand and nuzzled into her side in such a way that told me he probably wouldn't _survive_ if she didn't make it. I couldn't help but understand that feeling myself and it was this that helped me realize that he was no longer _my_ brother.

Though I had finally found him, I knew that it wouldn't remain that way. One way or another, I would have to give him up again.

No matter how much it hurt.

…

It took about an hour to finally get Karai into a stable state where I was comfortable that she was no longer in danger, it was during which time that Leo and Mikey arrived to offer what little aid they could, which included moving her to one of the beds so she could rest.

"Okay," I finally told the rest of the room as I reached down to insure that her pulse was still strong, causing everyone to look at me in expectation. "She'll be okay now." I finished and they all sighed in relief.

However, as I tried to get up to give Zero some time with her, I found that my legs refused to cooperate with me.

"Easy," Raph insisted, immediately at my side and gently helped me to my feet before steering me over to the other bed, where he forced me to lie down even though I complained.

"Donnie," He stated sternly. "Yu've been awake fur nearly _3 days_. Ya need ta _sleep_." He ordered in that tone of voice that said I wasn't going to win this fight, as he had already rallied Leo and Mikey against me.

I soon decided it wasn't worth the energy to argue with him and quietly lay back as he patted my shoulder reassuringly. "It's alright bro," He added gently. "Ya did yur job, I can take over from here."

"Yeah," I agreed tiredly, causing him to smile before getting up to see to his new patient, leaving me to turn ever so slightly so I could watch Zero snuggling up into Karai's side where he proceeded to look straight at me with a set of leaf green eyes that I couldn't help but remember from my childhood. It was this that proved to be enough for me to drown the last of my fear and come to an _acceptance_.

Watching the way Karai had continually reached out to comfort him, even though she was essentially _dying_ , proved that if I _had_ to give him up again, _she_ was the best person for the position.

He wasn't that little mutant who needed my comfort and protection anymore. Like me, he had found a family of his own and that was enough to finally help me into sleep, where I no longer feared the nightmares on the other side.

* * *

 **Mistystar123** has earned kudos for calling it that Zero was really Donnie's brother.

Go you!

XD


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

( _3_ _rd_ _:_ )

Raph kept a close eye on Karai as she slept, making sure she was warm enough and that her breathing continued to remain stable, which Zero didn't object too, just so long as he was allowed to stay with her.

"Hey," Raph said, gently touching the other turtle's shell to get his attention. Donnie had told him about how the kid used his future-sight thing to _see_ and _hear_ , but it was still weird to be addressed _before_ he'd even spoken, "Why don't ya come over on this side, so she can be in the _sun_?" He requested, pointing toward the window, which Zero was blocking from his current position.

The kid proceeded to nod, almost before Raph had finished his question, and got up to watch over her from the other side of the bed, so the sun could heal her more effectively. Though Raph wasn't sure if it would help her in the same way it helped them, but he figured being a _reptile_ had to be good for something.

"How's she doing?" Leo asked quietly as he entered the room to check on things.

"It'll take her a while ta get up and about again, but if she gets enough food and sleep she'll be fine," Raph announced, before turning to make sure Donnie was still resting, "I didn't realize he wasn't sleepin', or I would a said somethin' _earlier_ ," He added solemnly and Leo walked up to put on hand on his shoulder.

"You know he's always been good at _hiding_ it," He proclaimed truthfully and Raph scoffed in annoyance.

"Yeah, but it's still _my job_ ta see past it and _tie_ him ta his bed when he does," The red-clad turtle muttered sourly, causing his brother to laugh lightly in response.

"And you _did_ ," He answered truthfully, shooting down the next thing Raph was about to say as Leo put his arm around his shoulder and steered him toward the door. "Come on, you need to eat something."

"But –" Raph started to complain, however, Leo wasn't taking 'no' for an answer.

"They'll survive without you for 5 minutes," Leo proclaimed as he pushed his younger brother into the main room, where Mikey had set about making a fire-pit and proceeded to prepare some food from scratch.

The youngest turtle only smiled as Raph sat down and promptly handed him a bowl of some kind of soup, which the red-clad ninja accepted gratefully when his stomach began to growl in response to the aroma of scents in the air.

"I can't understand how ya two are _related_ ," He put in, causing both of his brothers to raise an eye-ridge at him, " _Mikey_ can make a meal out a _anythin'_ , but the last time I got a look at _you're_ cookin', it looked _back_ at me," He added around a grin as he pointed his spoon in Leo's direction.

"It wasn't that bad," The blue-banded turtle contended with a glower.

"Wasn't that bad?" Mikey repeated in disbelief, "It was the first time in my life I'd ever been afraid of _food_."

"Fine, see if I do anything for _you_ ever again," He muttered sourly as he lifted his cup to take a sip of tea as the two younger turtles shared a laugh in response to their older brother's antics. It wasn't very often that Leo was _playful_ , so they tended to take advantage of it when they could.

Of course, it was at this time that Zira decided to announce herself by coming in through the window.

"I thought ya didn't _like_ climbin'? Raph proclaimed around his food as she strolled over to them.

"I figured if I'm going to keep following you four around I should start _practicing_ ," She declared as she folded her arms in a huff.

"Where did you go?" Leo asked respectfully, noting that she seemed to be seriously annoyed about something.

"I needed to talk to Bishop," She proclaimed as if speaking of the weather causing them all to look at her in shock, but instead of answering she decided to change the subject, "Is Donnie awake?"

"Not yet," Leo answered, trying not to show how concerned he was regarding her _distance_ from his brother and was about to ask what business she had with Bishop when Mikey completely derailed the topic.

"Why do you only call _Donnie_ by his real name?" The orange-clad turtle added curiously and she shrugged.

"He's my _mate_." She answered simply as if that should explain everything.

"I'm not sure that _counts_ ," Raph stated as he got to his feet again. "Cause ya see, here on _earth_ , we have this thing called _free will_."

"You think this was my _choice_?" She proclaimed dryly as she got in his face.

"I don't hear ya _complainin'_."

"I don'thear _Donnie_ complaining ether," She countered truthfully and Raph was about to answer when another voice entered the conversation.

"And I don't recall asking you two to debate what I do with _my_ life," Donnie's voice suddenly declared and they all looked around to find him leaning against the doorway to the bedroom, where he had folded his arms to glare at them accusingly.

"Don –" Raph started, but was promptly interrupted.

"Raph, you're my brother and I will _always_ love you, but you make it real hard to _like_ you sometimes," The purple-clad turtle proclaimed in annoyance.

"But –" Raph tried again.

"This situation is already unpleasant enough without listening to you two _bicker_ like old ladies every 10 seconds," Donnie butted in again, causing his sibling to once again attempt to defend himself, but didn't even get the first word out this time, " _Drop it_!" Donnie ordered sternly and Raph quickly shut his mouth to sit down and continue with his meal, thus leaving everyone in stunned silence for a moment.

"Hungry?" Mikey stated with a smile in an attempt to break the awkwardness as he offered a bowl of soup toward his slightly older brother.

"Famished!" Donnie answered, walking over to sit with the group as Zira joined in as well.

"What's in this?" The female alien asked after a minute of eating.

"You don't wanna know," Donnie quickly proclaimed, before pointing his spoon at his only little brother threateningly, "And _don't_ you tell her either, you shouldn't have told _me_ , but you _did_ , and now I wish _I_ didn't know."

"Why?" Zira proclaimed cautiously, looking from her food to Mikey who gave her a sheepish little smile before stuffing his mouth full of soup so he couldn't talk, even if he wanted to.

…

"I think she's waking up," Donnie proclaimed, a few hours later as he checked Karai's pulse again and determined that she was in fact regaining consciousness.

"Zero?" She asked in a groggily voice as she looked around and said turtle quickly reached out to take her hand to assure her that he was still there, which allowed her to look past him to the rest of the room. "Where are we?" She added in a panic, quickly moving to get up but Donnie stopped her before she reopened any of her wounds.

"It's okay," Leo put in gently, "You're safe."

"Where's Slash?" She growled under her breath, spiting out the name like a bad taste, "That damn _traitor_ ," She added absentmindedly as she looked around with a fire in her eyes that promised torture and death to the person of her interest should he show himself.

"You don't have to worry about him anymore," Leo informed her sternly.

"Plus, from the way Slash was talkin', it sounded more like _you_ were the traitor," Raph reminded simply, causing her to look at him for a moment before lying back down to stare at the ceiling as that sank in.

"How do you feel?" Leo decided to ask in an attempt to change the subject.

"Why don't you just say what you _wanna_ say?" She countered sourly. "You were right, I was wrong. You _told_ me so," She proclaimed in annoyance.

"I would _never_ say that," Leo stated seriously and she quickly turned to look at him in shock, "You just _lost_ everything you knew, I could never _brag_ about that," He added kindly, causing her to continue staring at him for a moment before closing her eyes and turned away.

"You know its okay to cry?" Donnie added after a minute, leaving her to look at him out of the corner of her eye, "There's a powerful neurological connection between the brain and one's emotions," He explained kindly as she continued to turn ever so slightly to face him, " _Stifling_ the body's need to cry, in emotionally difficult situations, is – _unhealthy_."

It seemed that this statement finally cracked a crucial founding brick in her wall of stern discipline, as everything about her demeanor crumbled, leaving her to quickly hide her face in Zero's hand when he attempted to comfort her as she quietly wept for all she had just lost.

It became obvious that she had been holding in her sadness for a quite a while, for once she got started she almost couldn't stop, but none of the brothers said anything as they completely understood her need for tears and, though it would take _time_ in the end, the comfort of water could only _aid_ in the healing process.

"You want to know where your friends are," She suddenly spoke up again after several minutes and they all looked up to find her moving to sit in her bed so they could talk.

"I'm not going to deny that we would appreciate it," Leo admitted, "But that being said we _don't_ intend to do anything to you if you refuse."

"Yeah, I _noticed_ ," She agreed solemnly, "Shredder received word that you four were alive," She added quietly causing the brothers to wince, though they had known that before it was still hard to hear it _confirmed_ , "It was my mission to find your friends so he'd have a way to _control_ you."

"We thought it might be something like that." Leo proclaimed simply, "Are they alright, at least?"

"I don't know," She admitted looking into his eyes sternly as she continued, "I _never_ found them."

"What?" They all asked on auto-pilot and she allowed herself a tiny little grin in response to their shock.

"When we arrived at the location we'd tracked them to they _weren't_ there," She explained, "They had been _warned_ ahead of time and managed to escape. It was then that we realized they were friends with _Irma_ and our mission was rewritten to find _her_ instead," She continued simply as she looked down at her hands in thought, "I believe you already _know_ the rest."

"But if _Shredder_ doesn't have them, then – where are they?" Mikey asked the question that was on everyone's mind.

"All I know is that Irma was likely the one to tip them off. But how _she_ knew –" Karai added simply as she turned to look at Donnie considerably, "That's anyone's guess," She finished causing the turtle to raise an eye-ridge at her.

"You think that's what we were looking for?" He asked curiously.

" _Weren't_ you?" She countered calmly and he scoffed.

"Actually, _no_ ," He answered sternly, "I admit the information was a nice bonus, but our main goal was to _free_ Irma from Shredder's control."

"You're lying," She proclaimed disbelievingly, "Shredder doesn't have that kind of power and if he did there would have been –"

"Mental defenses?" Donnie finished calmly, causing her to display some slight shock in the process, "Yeah," He started again as he took a peek in Zira's direction to make sure she was alright with him bringing up the subject, "We _found_ them, they nearly _killed_ us."

"That's – _impossible_ ," She continued to refute.

"And _why_ is that?" Leo asked then as he walked over to sit on the edge of the bed and she turned to look at him again.

"He doesn't have that kind of power," She repeated.

"Ya know for someone who was just _betrayed_ by Shredder yu're pretty adamant about _defendin'_ the guy," Raph butt in at that point as he crossed his arms in annoyance and watched her calmly as she turned to glare at him.

"It was a _misunderstanding_ ," She proclaimed stubbornly.

"And Shredder basically _ordering_ Slash ta take you out if ya ever learned the truth, I suppose that was a misunderstanding as well?" Raph countered with a disbelieving grunt as he leaned down a little to glare right back at her, "He trained his little _puppy_ well, I see?" He finished insultingly, causing her to coil like a cobra ready to strike but Leo quickly walked between them.

"We can _prove_ it," He offered naturally.

"How?" She muttered with a narrowing of her eyes.

"By showing you _first-hand_ what Shredder has done."

* * *

Reviews Please


	3. Chapter 2

Sorry, I completely missed Friday, I don't know what the heck happened. ^^; ... Here's the next chapter.

…

Chapter 2:

( _3_ _rd_ _:_ )

It took a little less than an hour to prepare, but, sooner than they would have really liked, Donnie and Zira found themselves once again on the spiritual plan that was the mental world of the mind, but, of course, this time they decided to influence the area a bit and created a blank white space to hold their little – _meeting_.

"Are you sure about this?" Zira asked as Donnie took a breath to steady his nerves, "She's obviously well trained, this could all just be a _trap_ to get what we're about to give her."

"Leo and I are the best mental organizers of our clan, we can handle it," Donnie answered simply, causing her to raise an eyebrow at him in question.

"And you think she isn't _prepared_ for that?" She countered truthfully, but he only smiled as he finally turned to look at her.

"We _know_ she is," He admitted and she cocked her head slightly to demand more of an explanation, "But, that's why _you're_ here," He finally finished.

"Ex-squeeze me?"

"She may know what _we're_ capable of, but she has no idea what abilities _you_ have," He proclaimed as if speaking of the weather.

"But if you two can't take her there's no way _I'd_ be able to," She admitted suddenly causing him to give her a strange look, before she quickly reworded her statement. " _Theoretically_ , of course," She added sternly and he smiled.

"Obviously," He responded before looking around as he felt his oldest brother touching the edge of the mental world to gain access, "But _Karai_ doesn't know that," He explained quietly, "And that unknown variable will keep her from trying anything."

"You're _sure_ about that?" She proclaimed insistently leaving him to quietly turn and look at her again as Leo and Karai's presence entered the area.

"Just keep acting like your normal, _stubborn_ self and we'll be just fine," He announced with a straight face and she promptly glared at him before they turned to find Leo and company walking up.

"What took you so long?" Zira immediately asked, causing the oldest turtle to raise an eye-ridge at her questionably and his brother to face-palm as the alien casually turned to him again, "Too much?" She asked sugarly, like she was completely oblivious to the fact that she was pushing their luck.

"Maybe a little," Don admitted sourly.

"What are we doing here?" Karai suddenly demanded, causing Zira to blink at her.

"Girl's got ' _tude_ ," She proclaimed in annoyance and Donnie couldn't help but laugh lightly in response.

"Then you two should get along _smashingly_ ," He stated, causing her to glare at him once again as Leo started to explain their situation.

"I'm sure you're aware that _in the mind_ things _can't_ be _hidden_. So, we're going to take you through some old memories," He announced calmly.

"And if I _still_ don't believe you?" She countered confidently.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," He answered sternly, before forcing his influence on the area which suddenly caused the white background to dissolve into a large _dojo_.

The tatami mats crunched softly under their feet as they shifted to adjust for the difference and look around at the dark wooden pillars and balconies that were expertly accented by the white shoji doors on all walls but one, which filtered brightness from the outside world throughout the room in an impressive mirage of light.

"This is your mind?" Karai asked after a minute and Leo turned to nod in response, "It's – _beautiful_ ," She finally admitted in obvious surprise, "I wasn't expecting that."

"We're not _evil_ , despite what you've been told," Leo countered calmly, "All we really want is to _help_ ," He added simply causing her to look away in denial even though it was physically impossible for him to _lie_ this deep in his own subconscious.

No one said another word as Leo then led the way to the far end of the room where large Japanese scrolls decorated the walls around a pedestal that held several small _ihai's_ that had been set about the shrine in an order only _Leo_ knew the importance of.

Once there, he just calmly picked up one of the small spirit tablets, which was pure black in color, and turned to hand it to Karai who watched him cautiously for a second in hesitation.

"I'm not forcing you to do anything," Leo started again kindly, "I just don't want you to have any regrets."

She seemed to consider that for a moment more, before finally reaching out to touch the _ihai_ with the tip of her finger which seemed to cause the room to darken slightly as if the clouds had chosen that moment to cover the nonexistent sun outside the walls.

However, Karai didn't notice this change as she was suddenly lost in the memory that had been contained inside the little shrine, a memory of when the brother's freedom was still so new and had been taken away for a short moment as _another_ had controlled their actions.

The vision was actually _not_ from Leo's point of view but another's who had seen it all transpire, who had watched as Shredder ordered them to attack until their bodies couldn't handle the stress.

She felt the desperation of that person as he tried to help them, the pain when he realized that he couldn't and how that had quickly erupted into anger as he attacked Shredder, nearly killing the man before stopping as _guilt_ racked his soul and then finally she felt his _relief_ when it all ended.

Karai learned very quickly that the memory she was witnessing was from her father's sworn enemy, even though what she was seeing completely contradicted what she had been taught. For her memories told of how Yoshi had captured the brothers and turned them into weapons, were in this vision it was _Shredder_ who was the obvious enemy.

Just as quickly as the memory had begun, it ended and a moment later Karai was pulled back into the dojo where Leo quickly caught her before she could hit the ground.

"You okay?" He asked with slight worry.

"That's a _lie_ ," She immediately retaliated, pulling away from him as she backed up, "Yoshi _implanted_ that memory in you."

"She's certainly a _stubborn_ one," Zira commented dryly as she watched the confrontation and Donnie sighed in agreement as he realized they would have to go a bit deeper to get through to her.

Leo had obviously come to the same realization as he had quietly returned the little tablet to the pedestal before reaching out to choose another.

"Why would you keep such fowl memories?" Karai suddenly demanded of him as he turned back around. "You could easily _destroy_ them, why wouldn't –"

"You are the biggest _hypocrite_ I've ever met," Leo interrupted calmly, causing her to start in response to his suddenly serious tone, "You would continue to worship a man you _obviously_ have doubts for, but would have me destroy my memories when you, yourself, will not see past your own?"

"He's got you there, hon," Zira proclaimed as she folded her arms to regarded the other female sternly who continued to stare at Leo for a minute before turning to look at the alien in question then back at the other turtle as he held out the next _ihai_ for her.

"It's still _your_ choice," He reminded her, "If you _don't_ want answers, you don't _have_ to look for them."

She obviously got the double meaning of those words as she looked down at the new tablet in his hand for another moment before finally reaching out to touch it as well.

…

 _Ihai ~_ _ancestral_ _,_ _memorial_ _or_ _spirit tablet_ _~ A small shrine of stone or wood used to honor one's ancestors._

…

( _Donnie's POV_ )

We ended up having to sort through nearly every bad memory Leo had in his possession which clearly took its toll on him as well, but it seemed to have all been worth it as we seemed to finally get through to Karai in the end.

"What did you show her?" I asked my brother gently as I watched the female turtle curl up in a corner to contemplate the last memory she had observed and I didn't miss how my brother quietly reached up to massage his temple as if attempting to calm himself.

"The dark room," He finally stated with a volume that only I could hear.

"I have to wonder," Zira suddenly perked up and we turned to look at her again, "Why would she put up such a fight to keep memories she obviously doesn't _want_?" She finished and I opened my mouth to answer before realizing that I didn't have one.

"The only reason I can think of –" She continued simply. "Is that there's a _good_ memory she would give _anything_ to protect," I didn't understand what she could have meant by that but my _brother_ obviously did.

"Her _clan_ ," He suddenly proclaimed and I looked at him again in question causing him to continue, "She always seemed to be the most violent when talking about her _clan_ , she actually accused us of _destroying_ them."

"When you say _clan_ , you mean –" Zira requested calmly.

"I think she may be talking about _The_ _Foot_ ," Leo guessed confidently.

"But, they've been gone for _centuries_ ;she's not _old_ enough to remember their destruction," I stated on auto-pilot.

"Zira, is there a way you can find out _why_ she's so confused? Like what you did with Irma?" Leo asked, causing her to look at him again then back to Karai for a moment where she announced a 'hum' of curiosity before walking over to the woman in order to give it a shot.

"You know," Leo started again as he watched the two girls converse for a minute, "If her father really _did_ send Zira to us for a reason, I'm starting to see _why_."

"She's certainly been a lot of help lately," I agreed solemnly, causing my brother to look at me again.

"Do you think –"

"No!" I interrupted before he could travel too far down that line of thought. "I _saw_ what the Barron did to her clan, Leo. There's no way she would work for him."

My brother just nodded in agreement, respectfully choosing not to ask about it as we continued to watch Zira speak with Karai before finally beginning the inception and delved into the other turtle's mind for answers.

It took several minutes but Zira did seem to eventually find what she was looking for before sitting back on her haunches to think over the information she'd gathered, which Leo decided was our Q to intercede.

"It's worse than I thought," Zira admitted as we walked up where she continued to watch Karai closely as if worried that she would collapse on the spot, "It's – _confusing_ , but I'll try to explain," She added as Leo and I knelt down to their level,

"Someone's implanted _several_ layers of memories into her subconscious. The first level seemed to be an attempt by this Shredder person to make her believe that she was his _daughter_ and that someone named _Yoshi_ destroyed her clan."

"This seemed to be the major driving force of her _revenge_ – until _recently_ that is, which was when someone attempted to _rewrite_ her memories again, this time he tired to make her believe that you four were his _sons_ ," Zira continued, which made my brother and I twitch in discomfort, but we didn't interrupt, "Again, it was this Yoshi character that served as the driving point, making her believe that he was _forcing_ you guys to serve him."

"Okay," I stated in bewilderment.

"I told you it was confusing," She answered, before starting again. "The second memory only came into play about a _week_ ago, which, I bet, was in response to Shredder discovering that you four were actually _alive_ ," She continued seriously, "It seems that the memory was shortly rewritten to encourage her to _capture_ you and bring you back to Shredder to be – _freed_."

"I never realized how _full of himself_ he was," I muttered under my breath and my brother scoffed in agreement as we listened to the rest of her story.

"However," She started again, "The second memory ended up being created as another _layer_ instead of an over-write. This caused the two to _merge_ , which in turn caused her to become confused and believe that instead of _being_ her family you guys had actually _destroyed_ it."

"But what about my _clan_ , my – my _mother_?" Karai suddenly asked in a tone of voice that was probably the closest she would ever get to _begging_ , which really made my heart bleed for her.

"That only makes it _more_ confusing," Zira proclaimed dryly as she went on, "I checked _all_ of your memories _thoroughly_ ; both real and fake, but I can't find _anything_ about your mother."

"What?" Karai asked in confusion, "How can she not be there?"

"I don't know," Zira admitted solemnly, "I guess it could be that your memories of her are buried so _deep_ under the layers that I just can't find them, but –" She tried to explain before attempting to think it over again as if trying to find a better answer.

"You know more about this than any of us Zira," Leo declared suddenly and we all turned to look at him, "Given your _experience_ – would you say that her mother is real or fake?"

Zira seemed to think about that for a minute. "Given what I _know_ –" She started, "I'd say her mother was just a memory _made_ by Shredder to control her," This caused Karai to curl in on herself in obvious distress until Zira continued, "But given what I _felt_ –" She corrected, causing the other woman to look up at her again, "I'd say your mother is the _realest_ part of you."

"What does that even mean?" Karai asked quietly, causing Zira to smile at her.

"It mean's that – no one that you _love_ as much as you love her – could be _fake_ ," She explained simply, leaving Karai to once again look at the ground as she tried to absorb that.

Clearly, it was going to take some time for her to come to terms with what she had learned here, but with a little help she'd eventually recover, and as I watched her look up at Zira with a little smile of her own it seemed that she was on her way.

…

"I knew Shredder was a royal _asshole_ , but that's taking it ta whole new level," Raph proclaimed, about an hour later after we had come out of the mental world and informed our brothers, who had been left behind as guards, of what we had learned.

"No kidding," Mikey agreed with obvious anger as he folded her arms defensively over his chest, "He actually thought – his _sons_?" He proclaimed in disgust.

"Pretty much," Zira answered him.

"Can I just say – HELL NO!" Our youngest brother responded loudly, making us all laugh.

"Well, that'll have to be a crisis for another day," Leo declared as he steeped up to take charge again, leaving Mikey to shiver as he attempted to rid his mind of the horrible images, "We _still_ need to find April and Casey," He added sternly.

"No kiddin'," Raph stated with a scoff, "Seems like every time we get a hit on 'em somethin' else happens ta _distract_ us –" He added before promptly cutting himself off when Zero suddenly rushed up to me.

"What is it?" I asked him and he quickly pointed at the window which had my two older brothers turning to look for themselves.

"What did I tell ya?" Raph proclaimed in annoyance as we spotted a small army of black clad _Foot Ninja_ descending on our location.

…

Reviews Please


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

( _3_ _rd_ :)

"Raph, get Karai!" Leo promptly ordered and the red-clad turtle immediately rushed into the bedroom to retrieve their quest, leaving the rest of them to make an attempt in locating a way out of the building that wouldn't get them discovered.

"A section of the first floor gave way," Mikey announced as he remembered the detail, "I could smell the sewer too."

"Not the sewer _again_ ," Zira complained, before Raph returned _without_ the female mutant in question, however he did display a very prominent scowl in her place.

"We gotta problem," He announced and Leo quickly rushed over to address it only to find Karai leaning against the far wall for support with a dagger in her hand.

"Karai, if you haven't noticed we're about to have some _very_ unwelcome houseguests," The blue-banded ninja informed her calmly, "So, what seems to be the issue here?

"I'm not going with _him_ ," She declared, waving her blade in Raph's direction and causing said turtle to raise an eye-ridge at her.

"Then _I'll_ take you," Leo announced with a sighbefore maneuvering over to the other side of the room, where he quickly sheathed his sword again and turned to offer her his back.

She took a minute to consider the proposition, but seemed to eventually decide that she liked the idea better, and climbed onto his shell, being careful to avoid riling her injures any further in the process.

"Remind me to work on your _people skills_ ," Leo informed his slightly younger brother sourly as he passed him the doorway again, causing Raph to throw his hands in the air in defeat before following his leader out of the apartment where everyone else was already waiting.

"Lead the way, Mike," Leo ordered and the orange-clad ninja quickly did as he was told where they swiftly started making their way back down the nerve-racking staircase of dilapidated wooden planks and collapsed floors that creaked ominously under their weight.

But, of course, just when they were ready to consider that they could escape without any issues, turtle-luck decided to rear its head again, and promptly found a rotten board on the 4th floor giving way under Leo's foot when he stepped on it, forcing him to jump back to avoid joining the thing in the abyss below, which echoed with the clatter of wood as it fell.

"Some ninja," Karai insulted from his back and he turned slightly to narrow his eyes at her.

"Keep it up and I'll throw _you_ in next time," He threatened calmly, before jumping the gap and continued on his way down the staircase. However, before they could get to their destination, Mikey brought the migration to a halt with a raised fist and, a second later, they all took notice that the shadows of _ninjas_ were quickly maneuvering up the stairs ahead of them in response to the sound.

Of course, this was all the reason Raphael needed to pull out his sai and prepare for a fight, but Leo quickly put a hand on his shoulder to stop the action and motioned with his head for him to help Mikey instead, who had located what appeared to be an elevator, but was having some trouble opening the doors.

Raph gave his brother a stern look, but went to do as he was told and a second later they had all silently made their way into the shaft and hung from the walls like a group of flies to wait in the shadows for the Foot Ninja to pass.

They had a small incident with one enemy that looked inside to see what he could find, but the human didn't have the proper night vision to spot them in the darkness and quickly moved on believing that the shaft was empty.

"What's the _deal_?" Raph demanded, reaching out to hit his older brother on the shoulder insistently, "We could a taken 'em."

"Not without them seeing Karai," Leo countered quietly, "She's supposed to be _dead_ , remember?"

"Right!" Raph proclaimed dryly, "'Cause, god forbid, we not help a _enemy_ in need."

"Exactly," Leo agreed sternly, then reached out to shove him roughing in the direction he had to climb to reach the bottom of the hole. However, before they could get there, another roadblock presented itself.

"Oh, wonderful," Zira announced sourly as they reached the _elevator_ which had stopped in its tracks several centuries ago and was now so corroded with rust and old deed plants that there was no way to get around it.

"Let's just cut the line and keep movin'?" Raph suggested.

"Yeah, I'm sure no one would _hear_ that," Donnie joked, earning a glare for his trouble.

"There's a door," Mikey announced at that time, pointing at the very tip of said device which was peeking up just over the top of the elevator, displaying just enough room for them to get through. If the door was _open_ , that is.

"On it!" Raph proclaimed and quickly jumped down, despite Leo's order not to, and causally landed on top of the elevator, causing it to bounce threateningly under the extra weight.

"Is he always so disobedient?" Karai asked curiously.

"Girl, I could tell ya stories," Mikey answered dryly.

"I _heard_ that," Raph muttered sourly and his brothers smirked during his attempt to force open the doors. However, before he could, _gunfire_ erupted from the other side and he quickly let it go so nothing could get in, leaving them to listen as someone on the other side howled in pain when a bullet ricocheted into him.

"Well, that was _subtle_ ," Mikey commented sarcastically.

"I thought ninjas didn't _like_ guns?" Zira added but she was ignored as everyone quickly moved onto plan B.

Seeing that they were already discovered there was no longer a reason to avoid making a lot of noise, so Raph quickly moved up to instigate his first idea of cutting the line holding the elevator up.

"How is that going to help, they'll just _follow_ us anyway?" Zira proclaimed truthfully.

"No, they won't," Donnie answered confidently, "There's _water_ down there and humans can't hold their breath that long."

"How do _you_ know that?"

"We're _turtles_ – it's kind of what we do," Mikey announced after Raph had finally severed the cable to the lift, but the thing only moved about an inch before getting stuck again.

"Our weight should be enough to get it moving," Donnie suggested as he jumped down to land on the thing causing it to bounce again and skid down a little farther.

"Yeah, that sounds _safe_ ," Karai responded sourly, but her complaint was promptly rendered void when Zero jumped down to land next to him and she sighed, "Never mind." She added as Leo joined them as well and before long everyone was standing on the thing causing it to gradually slide down the shaft at a snail's pace.

"Okay, this is too slow," Raph complained and promptly moved to perform one of his super-powered _hops_.

"Raph, no!" Leo tried to command, but it was already too late, the attack had hit and thus immediately sent the thing plummeting down the last 3 floors, leaving them all temporarily airborne, where they watched the elevator hit the water with the force of a wrecking ball.

Thankfully, the thing was moving fast enough by that point to immediately drop beneath the surface allowing them to use the water as a cushion themselves.

"Ow!" Donnie informed Raphael sourly after they had all surfaced again and earned a sheepish little smile in return.

"Oh, man, this water tastes _nasty_ ," Mikey complained, sticking out his tongue in disgust.

"Did anyone see a way out?" Leo proclaimed, reaching over to locate one of the walls in the darkness, so he could keep both himself and Karai afloat.

"There's a tunnel down there, but it's _dark_ ," Raph announced as he pointed down toward the object of his interest, just before the shaft erupted with the sound of more gunfire as the ninja above them decided that opening fire on something they couldn't see was better than loosing their prey.

"I'll take it," Leo answered, before diving down and led the way.

…

( _Donnie's POV_ )

Zira was a lot calmer this time around then during her first interaction with water, though she still clung to me as we swam and tended to demand more air long before she needed it, but it was better than her panicking and dragging us both down. Lord knows it was already hard enough to navigate through the darkness.

But we still had to come up in a pocket of air some 20 minutes later so she as well as Karai could take a breath, given that Leo couldn't breathe for her due to her _venom_ , which waswhere I found myself out of breath, and gasping for air as I came to the surface as well.

"You okay?" Leo asked as he, Zero and Karai came up next to me and I nodded, even though I continued to take in more oxygen like I was struggling to survive. It was a good thing I had been so readily trained in CPR, otherwise, I would have been having some serious health problems right about now.

"I guess this makes us _even_ , huh?" Zira spoke up then and I turned to look at her in the darkness, before laughing lightly at the irony, as it hadn't been that long ago when _she_ was helping _me_ breathe in much the same way.

"How much farther?" Leo suddenly requested when Mikey and Raph surfaced as well, having gone ahead a little ways to check for an exit.

"There's a light up ahead, but I'm not sure what it goes," Mikey announced and Leo confirmed the knowledge, which had Mikey quickly diving back down and leading the way to the thing he had found.

Thankfully, it wasn't that long before we reached the thing Mikey had located and suffered again inside a collapsed hole in the ceiling just big enough to flood the area with light and finally allow us to _see_ that the tunnel we had been swimming through wasn't actually a sewer but the _subway_.

This prompted Raph to do his _job_ and climb up to the platform in order to make sure it was safe for the rest of us. However, after a minute I found myself exchanging a look with my oldest brother as we became worried in response to his _non-return_ , and quickly left the girls and Zero with Mikey before climbing up ourselves to find out what was keeping him.

Though we had our weapons out and at the ready by this time; it was still too little too late as we discovered that we'd walked directly into the center of a _gang_ who currently had every gun in the place pointed at _us_.

"Drop your weapons!" One of the members up front ordered.

"Not gonna happen," Raph answered, stubbornly gripping his sai harder and causing the posse to tense up in expectation, leaving Leo and I to share a look out of the corner of our eye as we noticed something rather strange about this group.

We'd met a few gangs in the past, the most recent being the one from Hell's Kitchen that had thrown us the trigger-happy welcome to the neighborhood, but this particular crowd seemed to act more like _police_ _officers_ than a mob of criminals.

"Okay," Leo proclaimed simply as he carefully turned his swords so he was holding them by the blades in one hand and confidently addressed the faction. "I think we got off on the wrong foot."

Raph almost immediately attempted to complain but I reached out to put a hand over his mouth before he could start, successfully shutting him up. However, before Leo could continue, a new voice suddenly called from the back of the group, capturing everyone's attention.

"Come on people, drop the guns!" The voice demanded loudly as the gang parted like the red sea to reveal a character in their mists that continued to yell at his squad about acting like a _mob_.

However, before the man could cuss out everyone in the room, he suddenly took notice of us standing there and promptly stopped in his tracks like someone had just pressed the pause button on his remote, leaving him to stare at us as if seeing a ghost.

"I don't believe it," I proclaimed in denial as Raph smirked in recognition, before calling out to the guy by name.

" _Casey_?"

* * *

O.O

Well what do you know... I finally got their mission on track again... lol


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

( _Donnie's POV_ )

"Casey!" Mikey announced suddenly, making us all jump as he pulled himself out of the water to tackle the teenager-turned-adult that we had known from our childhood.

"Holy shit," The guy proclaimed as he righted himself again and looked us all up and down, "When did ya guys get so _tall_?"

"It tends to happen when one's had a few years to grow," I informed him truthfully, earning a surprised stare that I was coming to recognize, "Yes Casey, I can _talk_. Now drop it." I interrupted before he could say anything and immediately took notice of the _look_ Zira directed in my direction as she walked up, but I ignored it.

"So, this is Casey Jones?" Karai asked as Zero helped her stroll over as well, which allowed us to see that she had chosen to take on the form of a female turtle once again, clearly trying to blend in, however she still earned a bewildered expression from the hockey junky.

"Somehow I expected – _more_ ," She added insultingly and Casey quietly raised an eyebrow at the word. After which he attempted to comment on the statement but all he ended up accomplishing was opening and closing his mouth a few times before finally turning to Raph and settled on –

"What are ya _doin'_ here?"

"Lookin' for _you_ ," My brother answered sourly, "We've been all over kingdom-come tryin' ta find ya two."

"But – how?" Casey tried again, before Leo clarified.

"August called us," He stated seriously and the human quickly adopted an 'oh yeah' expression.

"Where's April?" Mikey demanded excitedly.

"She's fine," He responded sternly. "We were tryin' –" He started again, but was interrupted by one of the guys standing next to him, who leaned in to whisper something in Casey's ear which caused them both to look at Karai and Zero questionably.

"You two work for Shredder," Casey stated more than asked causing the female mutant to tense up.

"And _betrayed_ by him," Karai added sternly.

"Then you wouldn't mind providing us with some _information_ ," The other guy proclaimed seriously, causing my brother's and I to look toward Casey for an explanation.

"I'm sorry," He offered instead, "I can't say anythin' else around _them_."

"They shouldn't even _be_ here, Casey," The other man added demandingly.

"Well, they _are_ ," Casey responded immediately with obvious annoyance in his voice as he turned on the guy again.

"Then they should be _contained_ ," The man countered without pause.

"If what they say is true, then they're _welcome_ here," Casey pushed on.

"And if they're _lying_?"

"I'm _not_ gonna _imprison_ 'em, Torn." Casey nearly growled.

"No," Leo suddenly spoke up, "He's right Casey. You have a secret to protect and we've jeopardized it by coming here."

"That wasn't _yur_ fault," He proclaimed truthfully, but our leader quietly shook his head.

"You still have every right to be _cautious_ , and besides –" Leo continued calmly as we all finally put our weapons away in preparation of going to jail again, "We _found_ you, our mission is _complete_."

…

"This is getting old," Mikey muttered as we looked around the area we'd been locked inside of, which appeared to be more of a _waiting_ _room_ than a prison.

"Tell me about it," I added sourly as I leveled my chin into my hand in annoyance.

"I'm starting to think you guys are _jinxed_ ," Zira informed me, folding her arms in a huff to regard us with a questionable air of aggravation.

"Speak for yourself," I droned as Leo sat next to me so we could share a few words about our predicament.

"So," Mikey started again, clearly trying to start a conversation as he turned to Karai, "How do you chance your look like that?" He finally settled on.

"As far as my _memories_ are concerned I was _born_ this way," She admitted sourly, "But as we've learned lately – my memories aren't a reliable source." She added clearly more upset about that then she was leading on.

Mikey was about to respond again when the door opened and in entered Casey as well as – " _April_!" He announced happily and ran to give her the biggest hug ever, as she answered with a crushing embrace of her own while we gathered around to see her for the first time in over 12 years.

"I can't believe how _big_ you got," She added as Leo and I received a hug as well before she finally turned to Raph who smiled, but didn't approach.

"Raphael," She scolded threateningly.

"What – I –" He stuttered in response, but she'd never been the type to take 'no' for an answer and there was no reason to think that she was about to start now.

"Get _over_ here!" She ordered, causing him to finally inch in for a hug which she gave to him whether he liked it or not, "That wasn't so hard now was it?" She added sternly after the exchange with made.

"That depends," He responded as if talking of the weather, causing her to punch him in the shoulder so hard that he actually flinched.

"Now, someone tell me why it is you four are in – here?" She finished after a minute as the extent of her attention became trained on the three other occupants of the room, "And – who are they?"

"Maybe we should talk in another –" Casey started to suggest but –

"NO!" Leo, Raph and Mikey all promptly interrupted simultaneously.

The shout caught everyone a little off guard, so Leo quietly cleared his throat to explain further, "Due to a situation that we will _not_ be discussing Donnie and Zira can not and _will not_ be separated."

"Zira?" April questioned, causing the female alien to stroll over and place her hand on her hip with a smile.

"I don't think we've been properly introduced," Casey proclaimed and I immediately attempted to respond _before_ her, but failed.

"He's my _mate_ ," She answered with a grin, laying her arm around my shoulders to reinforce the claim, causing the two humans to display a set of eyes the size of pennies.

"Still haven't learned to _ease_ into that one, have ya?" I muttered sourly.

"Mate?" Casey repeated before turning to give me a knowing little smile, "Well, someone's been _busy_."

"It's _not_ like that," I immediately defended.

"Yet!" Zira added and I quickly turned to glare at her, trying to decide the best course to go about murdering the woman.

"Oh, so that's how it is," Casey proclaimed with a laugh of false understanding but Raph quickly put an arm around his shoulder to whisper something that sounded suspiciously like a warning into his ear which promptly caused the teen to give up on his teasing and act like a responsible adult for once.

"But is she –" April started to ask causing Leo to continue with his former response only this time he proceeded to use a tone of voice which declared that whatever he was about to say was _law_.

"She's with _us_ ," He started seriously, "Recent circumstances have proved her to be a valuable asset to our team and more than trustworthy to stand for our cause."

Zira seemed to be a little shocked by his words but that was nothing compared to her expression given upon _Raph's_ response, or rather his _lack_ of one, as he didn't say a word to disprove our brother and instead simply folded his arms as if ready to _enforce_ Leo's judgment if needed.

"Fair enough," Casey finally put in, clearly ready to take our word for it, "But what about the other two?" He added, smartly diverting the conversation to something else as he turned to look at Zero and Karai again.

"They're under our protection," I answered immediately and again no one spoke up to disagree with that.

"That being said," Leo quickly added again, "Their previous source of – _employment_ may cause some issues down the line, which is why we had plans to _conceal_ their identity."

"Takin' off the ominous black suites might help," Casey suggested truthfully which earned him a rather stern look from April, causing the man to back up a step in fear. "What?" He asked in shock, but only received a smack upside the head for his trouble.

"Excuse my friend, he can be a bit of a _bonehead_ ," April added snootily as she walked over to Karai and invited the lady to her personal quarters for a change of clothes, but not before giving Casey one last glare as the women exited the room.

"What did I say?" The poor guy proceeded to quail in confusion.

"Doesn't matter, Case," Raph informed him as he placed a hand on the man's shoulder sympathetically, "'Cause she's _always_ right."

…

It only required a few minutes for Casey to locate someone from his freedom freighters that matched Zero's general body-type, and we proceeded to dress the other turtle mutant in a system of clothes that helped to hide who he really was from anyone that might recognize him.

April and Karai took quite a bit longer to finally emerge with a change of style, however, when they did so I couldn't help but smile at the way Leo seemed to pause for half a moment as if transfixed by the image.

"I saw that," I whispered in his ear, causing him to quickly act as if nothing had happened, but I couldn't really blame him – she _was_ pretty.

The black of Karai's new skin-tight suite countered the lighter highlights of white and gold brilliantly, and the addition of a _mask_ much like our own was the perfect way to make her appear as part of our group.

"Wow!" Mikey proclaimed, before Raph grabbed the trails of his bandana and dragged him away.

"I guess we should have _expected_ this," I informed Leo, for despite the fact that we were well aware that she _wasn't_ of our species, ignoring the very attractive _female_ _turtle_ in our presence was still difficult.

Of course, it was at that moment someone coughed with disagreement at my shoulder and I turned to find Zira glaring at me accusingly. "What?" I countered defensively, which caused her to narrow her eyes a bit more leaving me to sigh loudly as Leo pulled himself out of his trance to speak with the two other women.

"If we're going to make this believable you'll have to change your voice," He suggested, which had Karai placing a hand on her hip like this was unnecessary information.

"This isn't my first rodeo, sword-boy," She proclaimed with a prefect American intonation, which was such a stark difference from her flowing Japanese accent that all we could do was stare for a moment.

"Right," Leo finally answered as she gracefully slipped her golden fan into the ribbon-like belt around her waste.

"What about a _cover story_?" Mikey suddenly pointed out around a somewhat _choked_ tone of voice, which had me looking back to find that Raph currently had him in a headlock for reasons unknown.

"I've already got that covered," Zira suddenly declared as she took a step toward Karai and continued to explain, "I spoke with Bishop earlier. We put on a big show for your _comrades_ about how we found your _bodies_ ," She explained further causing everyone to look at her with a surprised expression.

"You did?" Leo asked in shock, looking toward me for an explanation, but all I could do was shrug my shoulders in confusion.

"I noticed that Shredder's goons seemed to have no interest in me, so I used it to my advantage," She continued as if this should have been obvious.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked.

"You were out cold." – Well that made sense – I guess.

"Then you should have told _me_ ," Leo informed her sternly.

"You wouldn't have let me go," She proceeded quickly.

"You're damn right, I wouldn't." The use of the swear word was probably the only indication that Leo was upset with this new turn of events, "Bishop isn't the kind of person we ever wanted to _owe_."

"And you won't," She stated simply before adding in a tone of voice that suggested she was dead serious about this, "Bishop said he had changed, this was my way of finding out for sure if that were true."

"So you provided us with an _alibi_?" Karai finished simply, obviously finding this hard to comprehend, "Why?"

"Because I _owed_ you," She answered, turning to look at the other woman seriously. "Or more accurately – I owed _him_ ," She corrected, motioning toward Zero who cocked his head at her curiously.

"For what?" Karai proclaimed sternly.

"He saved Donnie," She finally revealed, causing the whole room to go quite as she continued, "Given my current circumstance, it's very possible that I may _never_ see my clan again – he's the _only_ one I have left."

Karai seemed to seriously consider that as Zira reached into her pocket and handed her a little piece of paper, "Whether you take it or leave it is your choice, but my deed is done," Zira finally finished, before walking back over to stand next to me, where I proceeded to watch her curiously for a second before looking back at Karai as she opened the paper.

"What's this?" Karai asked in a quiet voice as she looked up at Zira for further explanation.

"A place to start," She said simply, "Bishop looked up some landmarks for me as well. If you want _answers_ to your scrabbled memories – they'll be _there_ ," She finished pointing at the paper and causing the female mutant to take a deep breath as if she couldn't comprehend such kindness.

"You did this – for us?" She asked in complete shock by this point, causing Zira to smile.

"I know what it's like to lose a mother," Zira stated kindly, "I don't know if you'll find her, but I _promise_ ,as far as Shredder is concerned – you're _dead._ "

This new development clearly left everyone in stunned silence for several minutes until Leo opened his mouth as if to respond, but no words came out as he continued to think it over before turning to Karai.

"Would he believe it?"

Karai just looked at him before reading over the paper one more time and finally turned back to my brother and nodded, "Shredder can be clever when he wants to, but his God complex does tend to leave a large gap in his security. If this information got back to him, he'd likely not think twice about it."

She revealed this with a tone of voice that was clearly struggling to contain her emotion, as she was basically admitting that the man she believed to be her father cared _nothing_ for her, "However," She continued solemnly, " _Slash_ wouldn't be so easily forgotten."

"We'll take care of Slash," Leo answered calmly, causing her to actually _smile_ at him before walking forward to give him a surprisingly _genuine_ hug.

"Thank you," She whispered in his ear before backing up again, clearly a little embarrassed as her hardcore ninja training didn't usually support such emotions.

She was obviously about to say something else when the moment was interrupted by an _explosion_ that rocked the very foundation of the cave.

"What the hell?" Casey swore immediately, before we all rushed down the hall to the main room where most of the other freedom fighters had been stationed, only to find the whole place full of fire.

"Casey!" A voice called around a fit of coughing as the form of Torn made his way toward us through the smoke, in the process of helping another man to walk.

"What happened?" Casey demanded immediately, rushing forward to assist in any way he could.

"It's _Shredder_ – he _found_ us," The man answered around another cough, before zeroing in on the other two turtles at our side, "They led him right to us."

"No," Karai responded sternly seemingly ignoring him as she remained focused on the sounds of fighting that began to erupt from within the flames, "This is _not_ Shredder."

"Than _who_?" Torn ordered with anger, but it was Zira who answered this time and considering what I was seeing within the fire myself; I couldn't help but find that she was _correct_.

"It's _the Barron_."

* * *

Well, so much for the reunion... lol

Reviews Please


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

( _3_ _rd_ _:_ )

"The _who_?" Casey demanded in confusion.

"Barron," Leo responded as he turned to face their friend and Torn sternly, "Order your people to retreat!"

"What – we can't just –" Torn started to argue, but Donnie quickly made the disagreement vanish.

"The Barron isn't your normal enemy. The longer his men are _here_ the more of _yours_ he'll bring to his cause."

"You really think we're so easily _swayed_?" Torn countered angrily.

"It won't matter," Zira suddenly proclaimed, walking forward to get in the man's face, "No matter how strong the mind or how brave the spirit, my brother will control them _all_."

"Brother –" The guy started to ask, but she wasn't in the mood for questions.

"Get them _out_!" She bellowed, forcing him to back up a step before looking to Casey for his orders.

"Go!" Their friend commanded sternly and Torn quietly nodded in agreement, before bolting into the fray again to spread the word of retreat, leaving Casey to look back at the turtles in question, "Ya gonna _explain_ this?"

"Later," Leo answered quickly as he and his brothers pulled out their weapons, "Get everyone out; we'll try to buy you some time."

"But what about you?" April demanded with worry.

"He can't control us," He stated truthfully, before looking toward Karai and Zero. "Go, get as far away from this city as you can, we'll cover you," He told the female ninja, who paused for a second as they made eye contact.

A second later she turned to look at Donnie, having become well aware of his desire to protect Tokka and finally nodded understanding, ready to put their lives in the brother's hands as she grabbed Zero and they both bolted into the sewers.

There were no words needed between the turtles to know where their places were, as they once again split into their respective teams and begin taking on the army of black suited goons filing in from a hole in the wall with a large assortment of laser guns and flamethrowers in tow.

Raph and Donnie wasted no time in locating and removing any of the injured freedom fighters from the battle field while their other two brothers held off the hoard so they could work, however, it didn't take long for the orange and blue-clad turtles to find a particular Black Gator with an obvious air of _leadership_ about him as he stood watching the fight from a vantage point.

"Zira," Leo called quietly when the female alien appeared in the corner of his eye as they fought off several lower goonies, "Is that?" He requested seriously as he had never _seen_ the Barron in person and needed someone to inform him if the targeted Gator was the real deal.

"No," She answered in confusion as she bought herself a little time from the fight to get a better look at the man, "I don't know who that is, but it's _not_ my brother," She added, narrowing her eyes at the black suit for a moment, "But he could be one of his _Generals_."

"Generals?" Leo repeated as he elbowed a random enemy in the face without missing a beat or pausing in their conversation.

" _Others_ that survived the Barron's _experiments_ , he recruits them as _commanders_ of his army," She explained briefly, before continuing with her own battle.

"So, you're saying he's gonna have _abilities_ ," Leo concluded quietly as he turned to watch the man who he realized was _watching_ _him_ right back. However, the staring contest was interrupted when a gang of other black suits charged the turtle, but before he could take them down, they all suddenly _stopped_ as if a switch had been flipped, before they all just causally turned around to fight someone else.

"What the hell?" Leo asked in confusion, before turning back to find that the general had drawn a sword in expectation of a battle, which Leonardo quickly copied but was once again interrupted.

" _No_!" Zira suddenly commanded as she rushed over to stop him, "He's been sent here because the Barron believes he's strong enough to _weaken_ you."

"What?" Leo countered, before immediately pushing her out of the way so he could use his sword as a shield as the general randomly materialized next to them where he immediately swung his sword at Zira's head in retaliation of her interruption.

Thankfully, Zira was skilled enough to follow Leo's movement and came back up to fire off a round from her gun at the man's hand; forcing him to retreat again. "You can't fight him," She started again quickly getting the turtle's attention once more, "If he gets close enough, he'll _infect_ you."

Even though it didn't appear as though the general was willing to give him a _choice_ in the matter, Leo still nodded in understanding and started looking around to insure that everyone was out of the cave so that he could instigate a _retreat_ if necessary.

Thankfully, Donnie and Raph had done their job and gotten the freedom fighters out, but they had yet to return which meant that they were still too close, a retreat would only _lead_ their enemy straight back to them.

However, it didn't appear that the general was going to give Leo the time in order to await their return either, as he promptly attacked again, forcing him to guard against the other sword before it took his head off.

It was in this brief confrontation that Leo realized that the weapon was no ordinary sword – it was a _katana_ and judging from the general's swift and coordinated moves, he was willing to bet that his opponent was once a _Samurai_.

"I don't want to fight you," Leo told the man as they remained face to face for a moment, though he knew there was very little chance that the warrior could hear him through the programming that controlled his mind.

And the only response the guy had for Leo was to pull another sword from his belt and swing with such force that Leo heard a small sonic boom from the blade splitting the air over his head as he ducked and backed up several steps to get out of range.

Unfortunately, he didn't manage to get very far before the man was up in his face again and forcing the turtle to block and parry several other attempts to decapitate him. As such, it didn't take long before Leo was forced to use both of his swords even though all the while he was still struggling not to show the person behind that helmet any of his moves, knowing that the Barron, himself, could see everything.

It didn't take long before both Leo's and the general's blades _groined_ from the shear force of the battle, but their craftsmanship and care held out long enough for a smoke bomb to suddenly explode in the man's face causing the guy to swing around wildly in an attempt to wave the fog away, leaving Leo with enough time to realize that Mikey had arrived at his side and was giving him a way out.

The blue-clad ninja didn't say a word as he promptly followed his little brother through the smoke screen in the direction of their escape tunnel. However, just when they thought they had gotten away, Leo's instincts flared and he turned to find the black form of the general bolting toward them at a speed that should not have been possible for any _normal_ earth creature.

It was only thanks to his own superior mutant abilities and intense training that Leo was able to catch the attack and quickly used the man's momentum to level him headfirst into the wall of the cave.

"Holy shit," Mikey swore in surprise as he caught up on what had just happened, having not even _seen_ the man through his shear speed, but it didn't take long for the general to find his feet once again and turned back to them in order to continue with their battle.

Unfortunately, that was all they saw before the guy was charging again, only this time Leo's block missed its mark as the general had simply jumped over his head leaving the turtle to realize immediately what the man intended to do.

He'd been ordered to _weaken_ Leo – by _any_ means necessary.

" _Mikey_!" He called in a panic, but was too late to act and could only watch in horror as the other man's katana come down on his baby brother.

* * *

O.O


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

( _Donnie's POV_ )

Raph and I had made it back to the main cave after insuring that Casey and his people made it out safely. However, as my brother and I made our way through the old carved-out sewer system in search of Leo and Mikey; a phantom _pain_ we both recognized erupted. Leaving Raph and I to look at each other in shock as an unspoken understanding wasted no time passing between us and we promptly bolted down the hall toward our missing siblings.

It took us maybe another 30 seconds to reach them, but to us it felt like an eternity of making our way through the army of strangely _motionless_ Black Gators that had for some reason decided to just randomly stop fighting and stand where they were, as if their puppet master had suddenly gone _offline_.

"Donnie," Leo called to me when we finally rounded that last corner and my heart nearly stopped as I watched him trying to stop a very _bad_ blood flow from Mikey's arm.

As much as I might have liked to, I didn't let my panic take over and promptly ran to them; ignoring the form of the Barron's general who stood immobile nearby, before Raph got in his face to throw the goon away like a rag doll.

"What happened?" I asked as I fell to my knees next to Mikey and immediately scanned the injury to find that it was clearly from a sword and that it was _deep_ , but as I worked to patch him up, movement caught my eye and I looked up to find Zira in the corner holding an injury of her own; this one to her right arm.

"I'm fine, help him," She ordered unnecessarily. I could tell from sight alone that Mikey was a lot worse off and even if he hadn't been, she already _knew_ that he was my top priority.

"Donnie," Mikey whined quietly as I worked to close the wound, clearly causing him immeasurable pain in the process.

"I know," I told him kindly as I strengthened the tourniquet above the injury with a little help from Raph, "Just bear with me."

"Is he gonna be alright?" Leo asked in a whisper as he stood to the side, feeling more or less useless, but he knew not to try offering assistance unless asked otherwise, he would just be in the way.

"He's gonna be fine," I told everyone as I wound the last of a bandage around Mikey's arm and Raph quickly administered a pain killer to help with the process, "Now what happened?" I demanded as I came to the conclusion that everyone would be okay long enough to determine if our enemy was going to _attack_ again.

"I'm not sure," Leo admitted as he looked back at the general.

"He was trying to force me into a confrontation," Leo continued and I looked back at him as he tired to make sense of the scene, "He went after Mikey, but Zira – she –" He paused as he said this and turned to look at the woman in question while she carefully collected something on the ground and got to her feet, "She _protected_ _him_ ," He proceeded, "But when she was _hit_ – everything just – _stopped_."

"Zira?" I asked as I realized that she had come to the same conclusion and obviously had an _answer_ to the unspoken question as well.

"My brother and I –" She started with confusion, "We must be _– connected_?"

"Why didn't you mention that before?" Leo asked though he seemed to answer his own question as she turned to stare at him with an equality uncertain look in her eye before looking down at the soul chain on her wrist as if everything suddenly made sense to her.

"It must have been my _father_ ," She stated simply, obviously still finding doubt with her query as she rubbed her other hand around the cuff, "He's given us _protection_." She added more to herself than anyone else.

Realizing that she and Leo were pretty much still in _shock_ , I decided to bring everyone back down to earth and ordered a retreat for now in order to consider this new event at a place and time when we were certain of our safety. For, despite their blank stares; having this conversation around a handful of the Barron's men was rather – _creepy_.

…

"Ow, ow, ow," Mikey complained from Raph's back as we made our way through the deep underground tunnels in an attempt to become so lost that no one would have any hope of finding us.

"There it is," Leo announced after a few minutes at which time I started to fear for Raph's continued sanity as our baby brother milked his injury for all it was worth. But as we rounded that last corner to find the old create where we had once lived as kids; his complaints seemed to silence in response to the reminiscence.

"Wow," Raph finally interrupted as he carefully maneuvered Mikey over to the corner to sit him on surviving blankets from our old nest.

"It's just how we left it," Mikey commented truthfully, while I took a moment to look back at the tunnel behind us, before pressing a button on my gantlet that brought back the little metal dragonfly.

"Evinrude," I said kindly, causing the little robot to turn around in response to its name, "Activate _Guard Settings_ ," I instructed and a second later it informed me through several beeps that it had done so, before flying off to send out several echo-location pings that would determine what other life-forms were in the area and if they were dangerous.

"We're good," I informed Leo as I removed my gauntlet and handed it to him so he could continue to monitor the thing while I turned to kneel next to Mikey and check on his injury.

"Did you –" Zira started to ask as she eyed the scattering of broken childish things and smartly put the pieces together, "Did you _live_ here?"

"A lifetime ago," Leo answered with a little smile which she didn't return as she continued to look around the place solemnly, clearly a little disturbed by this fact.

"Try _two_ ," Raph corrected and he laughed lightly, before kneeling at my side to help me remove the bloody bandage from around Mikey's arm leaving the little twit to whine and moan about the inhumanity of it all.

"Well, if you've got this much energy to complain, I'd say you're gonna be just fine," I informed him, earning a glare for my trouble as I removed the lost of the wrap with a hiss of my own when the cloth stuck stubbornly to the wound.

"Are you sure?" Zira asked in a quiet voice and I looked around to find her standing in the corner to watch us as she continued to absentmindedly put pressure on her own injury like she had forgotten all about the blood still dripping from the cut.

"Yeah," I informed her kindly, before giving Raph a look out of the corner of my eye which he understood without further explanation and quietly got up to assist her.

"Be honest with me, Donnie," Mikey started again dramatically, "I can take it," He added with a fake wince as he nervously eyed the wound on his arm.

" _No_ , you're not gonna _loose_ it," I proclaimed seriously as I recalled him asking me just such a question clear back in yester-year, but this time I spoke the words with a somewhat _joking_ demeanor so that he would believe me.

I could tell by the way the cut seemed to suddenly veer off course that Zira had probably saved his life, but in truth he just _might_ have lost his arm; if not to the sword than to the _infection_.

Of course, I wasn't about to let that happen, but the "what if's" of what might have been had I _not_ been there still played through my head like a bad dream.

"Ow!" I heard Zira complain loudly from behind me as I used a specialized tool from my kit to program Mikey's nano-bots into cauterizing the injury safely and leave no room for infection or scaring, as well as finally stop the bleeding completely.

"Okay," I offered as I finished wrapping the wound again before getting up to check on Zira, who was obviously very unhappy with Raph at the moment.

But what else was new?

"You okay?" I asked her as I knelt in front of her in the hopes of maybe getting some information now. There was no need to check her injury as I was sure Raph had done his job without a hitch.

"I've been better," She growled in my brother's direction, causing him to ignore her before turning instead to put up with Mikey's complaining of how the world was a curl, unloving place, leaving her to carefully lick her wound in an attempt to close it.

"How can you and your brother suddenly be _connected_?" I requested calmly, causing her to give me a strange look.

"That's rich coming from _you_ ," She stated sourly, "You and _your_ brothers are _connected_ too, if you haven't noticed."

"That's different," Leo suddenly brought up as he continued to stand guard at the tunnel entrance, "We _knew_ about our connection, you _didn't_ ," He added calmly.

"True," She admitted, looking down at her lap where I noticed she currently held her _gun_ , which was now in _two_ pieces. Obviously, she had used it to shield Mikey, "It must have been something my father did," She stated again as she rubbed the soul chain again as if suddenly wishing that the man was there with her, "But I honestly don't know _how_."

"Do you think it works the other way around too?" I asked watching as she carefully put the pieces of her weapon back together even though she obviously knew that it was pointless.

"I doubt it," She answered solemnly and I didn't miss the way she looked at the gun with a _sad_ expression, clearly it had meant a lot to her, "My father wouldn't have _willingly_ put us in danger," She added distracted and I looked up at my leader as he took this in as well and nodded in agreement before turning around to give us a moment.

Taking a second to decide what to say, I watched as Raph fought with all his might not to whack Mikey upside the head for something he'd said until Leo walked over to separate them.

"You saved his life," I finally started looking back at her as she met my eyes, "There's nothing I can say to express how – _grateful_ I am, just – _thank you_ ," I added sincerely feeling some tears in the corner my eye as I spoke, "Thank you," I said again, causing her to smile.

"It's what you do in a _clan_ ," She stated kindly, "Right?" She added, but I shook my head causing her to frown in confusion.

"No, Zira," I started again, before reaching out to bring her into my arms to better prove my next words, "It's what you do in a _family_."

* * *

Reviews Please


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

( _3_ _rd_ _:_ )

Sure that they had outmaneuvered their enemies for the moment, the turtles decided to get a little sleep so they could handle a future attack, not to mention heal their injuries.

Returning to the surface would have been better as the sun would have done a cleaner job of it, but they couldn't afford to run into another ambush until Mikey could fight with them again, so a little _hibernation_ was in order.

Raph and Donnie, being the only ones not hurt or exhausted from battle, were posted as watch, which left the red-banded one to currently do the job as his brother rested up nearby.

"Don?" Raph asked quietly after he was sure everyone else was asleep, "Ya awake?" He added, taking his eyes off the tunnel for a minute to look down at his sibling, who was sitting on the ground resting his back against the wall.

"Yeah," He answered simply without opening his eyes, causing Raph to sit next to him where he continued to watch the area sternly for any movement, "What is it?"

"I gotta know somethin'," He admitted after a short pause and Donnie quietly turned to look at him.

"What?" He encouraged and his brother took in a deep breath, before finally spilling his question.

"Zira?" He started seriously, "Do ya really trust her?" He finally asked, causing Donnie to look forward again as he thought that over.

"I do," He admitted simply, "She's probably the most _difficult_ person I've ever met, but – yeah, I trust her."

"Even worse than me?" Raph proclaimed with a smile and his brother grinned as well before answering.

"Not even close," He stated simply, leaving Raph to wonder _which_ one of them he was indicating with the remark. Of course something told him that had been the _intention._

"So," Raph started again seriously after a few minutes of companionable silence, "I know nether a ya had a choice in this whole _matin'_ thing, but – do ya – _you know_?" He finished, causing Donnie to look at him like he'd just been forced to eat a bug.

"You gotta be kidding," He complained in a struggled attempt to remain quiet so he didn't wake anyone up, "She's the most _annoying_ person in the galaxy, not only did she get me imprisoned – _three times_ , but she also _blackmailed_ me, on top of that I'm pretty sure she'd sell me on e-bay if I gave her the chance."

Raph couldn't help but blink owlishly at his brother as the normally passive turtle continued to complain about the woman under his breath for another minute or so before he opened his mouth to interrupt.

"I don't believe it."

"What?" Donnie demanded, narrowing his eyes at him

"You _do –_ you _like_ her," Raph stated in shocked understanding and Don quickly attempted to retort again, but was suddenly unable to speak as his face contorted into a grimace and he face-planted into his knees where he groaned miserably.

"Damn, bro," Raph muttered sympathetically as he put an arm around his brother's shoulders with a laugh, "Ya got it _bad_ ," He added while Donnie proceeded to shake his head in denial and muttered something unintelligible into his legs.

"Okay," Raph stated with a sigh after a couple minutes, causing Donnie to turn his head so he could watch him out of the corner of his eye, "I get it," He told him in a suddenly serious tone, "I don't understand _why_ , but I get it," He offered genuinely and Don slowly lifted his head to look at him completely, "I'll – _try_ ta get along with her," He finally groaned.

"Raph –" Donnie started, but his brother promptly lifted a hand into his face to stop the speech.

"No – no, I've made up my mind," He insisted sternly, "I don't have ta _like_ it, but yur my _brother_ and I'm not gonna do _anything_ that might drive ya away," He proclaimed in a tone that said the conversation was _over_ as he folded his arms in a huff to attempt the return of his dignity, leaving Donnie to smile again.

"Thanks, bro," He answered quietly.

"Yeah – it's not like I could hate her after what she did for Mikey anyway," Raph instigated stubbornly, leaving Donnie to laugh lightly in agreement.

…

( _Donnie's POV_ )

I looked over from my post when movement caught my eye a few hours later and found Leo walking up as he returned his swords to their sheaths.

"Anything?" He asked looking around as well and I shook my head, not really wanting to _jinx_ our unexpected good luck by speaking about it, "I need to talk with you." He added quietly before walking away without looking at me, which caused Raph to wake up again.

"I got this," He offered in my direction and I nodded, before leaving him to stand watch again as I followed Leo to the end of the tunnel.

"What's up?" I asked once we'd stopped.

"April and Casey?" He stated simply.

"They said they had a rendezvous up top, they'll contact us when they figure out what they're doing," I explained, noting how my brother still didn't look at me as he nodded in understanding.

"So, what now?" I added, realizing that since we had discovered that our friends were safe and sound we were technically out of mission.

"We start where we left off," Leo stated seriously, "We find the Barron and take him down."

"What about Shredder?"

"He'll have to _wait_ ; the Barron is causing _a lot_ more damage," I nodded in agreement to that, even though I could tell that he was not happy about it. I couldn't blame him really, he'd been hoping that this mission would help us take out our greatest enemy and finally live our life without fear, but, instead, we'd just gained another one.

"So – where do we go from here?" I asked respectfully, causing him to finally look at me.

"I need you to do something, but you're not gonna like it."

…

"Ya want ta _what_?" Raph demanded loudly, leading me to stick a finger in my ear painfully as my two oldest brothers got in each others face to continue their yelling match while I walked over to Mikey again who was now understandably awake, along with Zira.

"How ya feeling?" I asked him as I knelt to check him over and search the wound for any infection.

"Better," He offered as he rubbed the offended area, "It still hurts though," He muttered miserably.

"I want to check your reflexes," I informed him as I moved his hand to see what I was doing and carefully manipulated the pressure points to insure that he could still use his arm to the fullest of its ability.

"Ow!" He complained childishly, even though I was sure it wasn't nearly as bad as he was going on about, "Ow, ow, ow, OW!" He screamed loudly and I sighed as I tested that his fingers still worked like they were supposed to, leaving him to groan sourly as I worked.

"Honestly, Donnie, why do you feel the need to torture your own _brother_? You're _evil_ ," He added without thinking, which promptly found the whole tunnel going quite as I looked up at him sternly, earning a sheepish little grin in return.

"Mikey, I'm gonna _pretend_ I didn't hear that, since you really didn't mean it, and if you say it again, I'm gonna _knock you out_ ," I informed him threateningly, leaving him to cower slightly as I retied the bandage before standing up to check on Zira.

"Where's my gun?" She demanded calmly as I knelt next to her and smiled. I figured she would have noticed that pretty quickly, so much for it being a _surprise_.

"Hello to you too," I offered before holding out said object which I had worked to repair while she had slept, "Gun's aren't exactly my specialty, but I figured I could give it a try," I explained as she reached out to take it and study the flawless seem where it had been previously separated.

"It should still work," I told her as she continued to stare at the thing with a general level of shock, before suddenly looking away as she tried to hide some unexpected tears in her eyes.

" _Iona_ ," I read quietly causing her to look at me, "If I'm not mistaken that's _Greek_." I added pointing toward the name caved into the handle of the weapon.

"Some languages are used across many worlds, by many peoples," She stated softly as she looked back at the gun.

"Was she your mother?" I asked respectfully and she nodded. " _Purple Jewel_?" I translated curiously causing her to look at me again.

"That's right," She confirmed and proceeded to lovingly rub her fingers over the gem of the same color set into the barrel, "You remind me of her," She told me seriously. "Clever, independent – _pure_ ," She added more to herself than me before going on.

"She was a Quantitative Aptitudinal too, that's why I knew so much about you," She explained as I carefully sat on the ground to listen to her story, "Many times throughout her life people betrayed her, tried to _sell_ her, but she always managed to outsmart them – until – until one day – she _didn't_."

"I'm sorry," I offered as I reached out to take her hand, trying to offer a little comfort.

"I thought maybe I could – use _you –_ to find her. To draw them out," She admitted solemnly.

"She's still alive?" I asked, mostly ignoring the first part of that sentence. It was in the past now, there was really no need to bring it up again.

"I don't know," She stated sadly, before looking up at me momentarily then turned to look at something else, "Not that it matters now."

I couldn't help but agree with her on that one, as much as I wish I could have offered her my help I knew it wouldn't make a difference. She'd never accept it, not _now_.

"Don?" Leo suddenly asked and I looked up to find him crouching down to our level, "Have you told her?"

"No, but I think she _heard_ you," I informed him with a grin as he realized that the conversation he'd been having with Raph was a little _louder_ that he had expected.

"It's a good idea," Zira admitted simply as she studied the ground in thought, "However, I do sense I small _snag_. I see an _in_ ,but no _out_."

"That's what I told him," Raph put in, causing Leo to glare in his direction so he promptly threw his hands in the air and gave up trying to convince our leader of anything else as he went back to keeping watch over the tunnel.

"I think I know someone who can help with that," Leo continued after another minute as he looked back at me and I couldn't help but stare at him in shock as I realized what he was talking about and suddenly found myself worrying about his sanity.

…

 _Iona_ ~ (eye OWN ah) Greek name meaning 'Purple Jewel'

…

( _3_ _rd_ _:_ )

"You're out of your mind, you realize that?" Zira asked some time later as she, Leo and Donnie looked around a corner to find their targeted ' _ally_ '.

"I have to admit, Leo, this does seem a little crazy, even for _you_ ," Donnie agreed simply, earning a glare from the corner of his brother's eye before he looked back at the man that was still leaning against the wall where Raph had thrown him several hours earlier.

"Just wait for my signal," Leo answered sternly, before rounding the corner and casually walked up to the Barron's _general_.

"Is he _serious_?" Zira demanded of Donatello in a whisper as he nervously watched his brother go.

"As the plague," He informed her, before ducking out of sight as the general looked around at Leo's approach and they watched as a forced smile cross the guy's face, proving that he was still being controlled.

"I didn't expect you to return so soon," The man stated in the same slimy tone of voice they remember the Barron using, "Either you have chosen to take on my general while he is weakened or you are here for _revenge_ ," The man deduced, earning a glare from the oldest turtle as he stopped several feet away from the guy, "I noticed a lot of _blood_ , did your underling not make it?" He added with fake sadness.

It took nearly every ounce of strength Leo possessed to not outright attack the man on the spot for such a comment, but he held his ground and continued with the plan.

"You haven't moved too far," He stated calmly, "What's the matter, can't deal with your _own_ pain?"

This caused the general to once again smile as he maneuvered himself into a standing position, "I admit that was unexpected," He answered truthfully, "But that's not to say I am unprepared for you."

"We'll see," Leo threatened, before charging the man drawing his swords at such a speed that they couldn't even be seen, leaving the two to battle at the peck of their performance for less then a minute before Leo finally maneuvered the man into position.

However, something happened at that point that he didn't expect, leaving him open to an attack and he promptly found himself hitting a wall.

"Donnie, _now_!" He ordered toward the corner, but still his brother continued to remain absent from the battle field. "Donnie?" He called again as he caught the general's sword on his, where he noticed the man was smiling again and his heart sank as he lost ground, then hit the floor as his feet were taken out from under him, leaving him at the mercy of a sword to his neck.

"Donnie?" He yelled at the spot where he'd left his brother before movement caught his eye and his heart stopped completely as an extremely _large_ Black Gator walked casually around the corner holding his brother about two feet off the ground by his throat.

"Did you _really_ think you could pull something like that on _me_?" The Barron declared through his opponent's voice as the other Gator threw the unconscious form of Zira into the cave as well, so that he could put all his focus into crushing Donnie's neck, forcing him to struggle for every breath.

"No! Let him go!" Leo demanded, trying to get free himself, but only succeeded in cutting himself as the general moved his blades closer together narrowing the space he had to move.

"Oh, don't worry," The Barron answered smugly, "I'm going to keep him _alive_ , but just _barely_ ," He added with a grin as Leo watched his brother's movement grow weaker and weaker, until his arms finally fell to his side and his body went limp.

* * *

Yeah, I know I may have touched a bit into the "relationship" of Donnie and Zira here, but it was just a random conversation between brothers, nothing more. These two have been best described as a "mutual agreement not to kill each other in their sleep" and that's how I intend to keep it.

;)


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

( _Donnie's POV_ )

"Donnie?" Zira's voice broke into my thoughts as I came too once again and winced as my neck protested against the action of looking up, "Hey!" She called again and I quickly followed the sound to locate her on the other side of the room behind some fuzzy lines that looked way too much like _bars_.

"What?" I asked in confusion, before shaking my head to rid it of the fluff and inspected the area more closely, "Perfect," I groaned sourly as I realized that she was indeed inside a _cell._

However, it appeared that I wasn't quite as lucky as I discovered that I couldn't move my arms and looked around to find that I had been tied between two posts and forced to my knees so that my upper limbs were at a painful angle behind me.

" _Aiya_!" I swore just before a door opened across from me and I looked up to find that it was Leo.

"Hey, good timing," I informed him, however he made no move to free me, "Leo?" I added in confusion as he walked into the room in a manner that was _nothing_ like my brother's usual demeanor.

"It would seem that your brother managed to _defeat_ my general," He proclaimed in a slimy tone of voice that I _recognized_ as the _Barron_.

"No," I said in a quite voice as he continued to explain what had happened,

"But it is no matter; I have gained a much _stronger_ warrior," He finished as he curled my brother's hand into a fist experimentally, before turning to look at Zira.

"Hello, Sister," Leo's voice greeted with a smile in her direction and I suddenly found that I couldn't stop myself from shaking in rage as the man forced my brother to do his bidding, "I'll be with you in a moment," He added as if speaking of the weather before walking up to me.

"Leave him alone!" She demanded, but he didn't seem interested in listening to her as he came to stand right in front of me so that I was forced to look up at him.

"Interesting, is it not?" He stated with a grin and I closed my hands into firsts as my brother lifted his own to examine it, "Though I did not expect him to be _color blind_ ," He added before looking back at me and quickly reached out to grab my face so that he could turn it this way and that as if searching for something.

"Nor did I expect _you_ to have the power to resist my nano bots," He proclaimed in thought, which made my heart stop for a moment as I realized the reason behind a certain prick of pain at the bass of my neck.

He'd _infected_ me too.

"I said leave him alone!" Zira ordered loudly, causing Leo to look back at her in a bored fashion as if trying to decide whether he wanted an apple or an orange for breakfast.

"Hm!" He muttered with curiosity as he turned back to me and forced my head up to make eye contact with him to continue where he'd left off as if she hadn't even spoken, "I admit I did not surmise that Raphael would fight me off, but that was easy to remedy, once I understood the _reasoning_ ," He proclaimed with another curious look and I couldn't keep the fear from showing my eyes at his words.

Was he simply talking about our _bond_ or had he upgraded the nano bots? Was Leo even _in_ there anymore?

As the Barron continued to force me to make eye contact with my brother, I decided to use it to my advantage and _search_ for him, which left me slightly relieved as I found that there was indeed _something_ in his eyes that was not the Barron's. It was hidden and locked away, but it was still there.

"So what is _your_ reasoning?" He continued after a minute, "What makes so willful, so strong that you can continue to ward me off?" He asked, clearly very curious as he forced my head down next so that he could look at the back of my neck.

"Is it your _spirit_?" He requested and I jumped as he touched the scar where I'd had the control panel for Shredder's own nano bots removed, "Or your _technology_?" He added, " _Both_ would be easy enough to _break_ , but I'd really rather not waste such time."

"Get away from him!" Zira demanded again loudly, but he didn't acknowledge the threat, except to finally let go of my face and walk around me as if examining a prize. I tired to keep him in my sights but the positioning of my body made it impossible to watch him at all times and he seemed to realize this as he quietly stopped in my blind spot.

"Perhaps you are too _focused_ ," He suggested, while I watched the shadow of my brother pull one of his swords soundlessly from its sheath, "Maybe what is needed – is a little _pain_ ," He proclaimed as the sharp edge of the blade touched my shoulder.

However, I continued to remain calm, trusting that even under another's control, Leo would never hurt me and it was with this thought process that I _smiled_ as the razor thin metal left the slightest of cuts in my skin.

"You don't have as much control as you _think_ ," I warned the man simply, causing him to pull the weapon back a little.

"And what makes you say _that_?"

"Leo's skill would never allow him to be so _sloppy_ ," I told him, realizing that the cut hadn't _hurt_ and there for had been a _mistake_ , arisen from a lack of control and knowledge about the swords that he held.

"Sloppy?" He repeated with a laugh, "In that case –" He added as the blade returned and this time it made an intentional slice on my arm, "I will take great pleasure in _prolonging_ your _suffering._ "

" _No_!" Zira suddenly screamed and I looked at her in shock, only to be interrupted when a server pain radiated from my back as the weapon was whipped across my shell in such a manner that it _penetrated_ the paper thin lines between two plates and the immediately sensation of blooddripping down my back announced itself.

"Why don't you face us _yourself_?" Zira demanded loudly of the Barron, causing my brother to laugh at her as I watched Leo's shadow move again and looked over to find him walking around to face me once more.

"Because this is much more _entertaining_ ," The Barron answered smugly, which was disturbingly _un_ - _Leo like_ as he raised his sword in a threatening manner, but I continued to stare him down with a bravery I wasn't sure I had.

I'd been raised to face what I feared and even if that thing was _death itself_ , I was not about to let an enemy see anything but my resolve.

…

( _3_ _rd_ _:_ )

Raph kept a close eye on the Black Gators as they carried Zira and his brothers through the underground city of pipes and tunnels as Mikey kept pace behind him. Nether one of them was happy about the turn of events, but Leo had given them specific orders to stick to the plan, no matter what.

They had to take out the Barron and to do that they had to _find_ him. Thankfully, the connection he shared with Zira had come to their attention, which would _force_ the man's hand and knowing that their enemy had discovered a weakness and would have to come for her eventually allowed the turtles to make it happen on _their_ terms.

"What?" Raph asked himself as they peeked around a corner where they had ghosted the Gators to, only to find a dead end. "Where –" He started to ask as he moved to walk into the tunnel, but Mikey quickly pulled him back and pointed up at something in the far corner.

Raph didn't see what was so important about the area, but he'd learned never to doubt his baby brother's abilities and quietly moved aside so Michelangelo would have plenty of room as he lined the spot up with an energy shuriken before letting the little weapon fly.

A second later, there was a slight pop of an electric gadget losing power and they looked back around to find the spot on the wall smoking slightly allowing them to round the corner and check out the empty tunnel without being watched by the camera.

"Where did they go?" Raph finally finished his earlier question as he studied the area for any sign of his brother's or the Black Gators that had taken them.

"It must be a secret entrance," Mikey suggested before a smile graced his face, "That is so _cool_ ," This promptly earned him a disproving glare from his sibling which he countered with a sheepish little grin, "I mean – yeah," He added, before reaching out to pull a random pipe set into one wall and took on an innocent stance as said wall suddenly moved aside to reveal a doorway.

This left Raph to bring his sai into his hands and cautiously enter the enemy stronghold where he was able to hide behind another corner and look around to find what he could only describe as a _portal_ taking up space in the middle of the room.

However, he noticed immediately that Donnie, Zira and the larger Gator were all gone leaving only the Barron's General and Leo behind, who was currently in the middle of another _fight_ with said individual.

It took less than a second for Mikey and Raph to join in the battle and bring down the man who was clearly _distracted_ by something as they forced him to the floor and held him there.

"Don't hurt him," Leo ordered as he came over to kneel down on the man's level. "I think it's working," He added, before removing the General's helmet which allowed him to locate a certain _shine_ returning to the man's eyes that had not been there before.

"Are you okay?" Leo asked him respectfully after he had finally stopped struggling and proceeded to look around as if in shock.

"Yes, I believe so," The guy answered with an accent that hadn't been present before, "What – what did you do?"

Leo calmly nodded at Raph to let him up as he reached into his belt for a little tube that displayed a needle point at the end and held it out for the man to see. "My brother was able to find a way to free someone from the Barron's control, but we knew you were too skilled to administer it without you being – _distracted_."

The guy proceeded to look at the blue-clad turtle in shock before reached down to touch an area of his chest that informed him that he had indeed received a recent shot of something and realized immediately what they had done.

"You – you _allowed_ me to capture you?"

"Yes," Leo told him with a smile as he reached down to help the man to his feet, "My name is Leonardo." He offered with a little bow toward the guy who was clearly of Japanese decent.

" _Usagi_."

"How long have you been controlled?" Leo added, causing the man to look at the ground painfully.

" _Years_ , I have done many _terrible_ things," He answered shamefully, but looked up again when Leo placed a hand on his shoulder reassuringly.

"No, you've done _nothing_ ," Leo informed him sternly, earning a small smile from their new friend before the rabbit proceeded to look around as if suddenly realizing that they were the only ones there.

"Your _friends_?" He proclaimed in a panic, but Leo quickly calmed him again.

"Don't worry, it's all part of the _plan_ , but we need your help with the _other_ part."

"Anything," Usagi offered immediately.

"Can you operate this portal?" Leo asked, motioning toward the glowing doorway in the room.

"Yes, what do you intend to do?"

"Take down the Barron," Raph answered this time.

"You must be careful," Usagi cautioned as Leo walked over to check out the doorway. Donnie and Zira would be waiting for him, he had to instigate the next phase of the plan – and _soon_.

"Usagi?" He asked earning the man's attention again, "You were in charge of making me one of the Barron's _general's_ correct?"

"Yes," He answered regretfully, before looking at Mikey and offered an apologetic bow for the misdeed he had preformed on the younger turtle. But lucky for him, Mikey wasn't the type to hold grudges and just waved him off like a bad dream.

"Do you still have the _nano-bots_ you were going to use?" Leo added, quickly causing rabbit alien to look at him in shock.

"Yes, but –"

"I _need_ them," He interrupted respectfully.

"I understand," Usagi offered as he reached into his suit for a small vile of clear liquid, "But you must be _cautious_ , they are much _stronger_ than the kind he uses to control his common army. They _must_ be in order to control our _skills_."

"Thank you for the warning, my friend," Leo stated with another bow as he took the little beaker, "But regardless – I _have_ to do this," He added as he pulled the cork from the top and made to drink the stuff inside without pause.

"Do not underestimate the Barron," Usagi informed him as he finished off the disgusting stuff and looked back at him, "He is not one to be easily _defeated_."

"I know," Leo told him seriously as he felt the nano-bots take hold and a slimy _presence_ invade his mind, however, his mind remained long enough to say one last thing.

"But, nether are _we_."

…

( _Donnie's POV_ )

I struggled to ignore the pain as the Barron once again used my brother's body to enforce his torture and carefully pulled the tip of his sword through the plates of my plastron this time, tracing a line along the skin underneath.

" _Brother_!" Zira demanded again, causing the Barron to pause, though I wasn't sure if he'd stopped because of her or my brother.

"Leo?" I said calmly, looking up into his eyes and nodded so slightly that only a _ninja_ could spot it, just as Zira put the next phase of the plan into action.

" _ZEKE_!" She called suddenly, forcing her brother on the other side of my own to respond to the name as if he had been shocked, "Drop it!" She ordered, glaring him down with all the fire of a sun, which caused him to suddenly freeze, before letting the sword fall to the ground as her own ability to manipulate a mind took over.

"Sleep!" She added sternly and he promptly dropped to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

"That worked better than I thought," I admitted as I released the end of the chain that had had to hold to keep up the rouse after Leo had secretly _cut_ _it_ during his first attempt at torturing me.

"You sure there's not a _camera_?" Zira asked quietly, looking around the room for such a thing.

"No, he uses his _men_ for that," Leo suddenly answered as he sat up again and rubbed his head where he'd hit the floor, which I quickly used as my Q to get back on my feet and reach for my gantlet that was sitting on a nearby table with the rest of mine and Zira's gear.

However, I quickly came up short as the chain that was still holding my right arm stopped me in my tracks. "Hey Leo, you mind?" I asked, causing him to turn toward me as he continued struggling to hold off the Barron's influence through the use of the extra dose of nano bots he'd taken before we'd started this whole thing and a strict regimen of master-like control over his body.

"Yeah," He stated, before expertly slicing his sword through the air and successfully severed the chain without harming me, even though he was still making sure to keep his eyes _closed_ so the Barron couldn't see us.

"Did I hurt you?" He asked as I collected my gear and got Zira out of her cell.

"No," I informed him sternly as I came back to help him to his feet. We'd known ahead of time that he would have to draw blood in order to make the ruse believable, the rest had just been good acting, but that wasn't to say that Leo was _happy_ about it.

"Are you _sure_?" He insisted seriously and I sighed, he knew I didn't like repeating myself, "Sorry," He offered in response, "It's just – he's _strong_ ," Leo added seriously obviously in the middle of another fight over his mind, "And he really does get off on _torturing_ others; I was worried he'd still – _get_ _through_."

"Don't give me that, you know you'd never let that happen," I informed him in a bored fashion as I lead him into the hall, where I didn't miss the small smile on his face in response to the overwhelming _trust_ we held in him.

"You're _color blind_?" Zira suddenly added, giving him a look though she knew he couldn't see it.

"No," He answered slowly, obviously confused by that question.

"Huh," I proclaimed in thought as I turned to check a hallway for guards, "It's probably your nano bots, I wonder if they've _adapted_ since Raph's run in with them?" I asked absentmindedly as I lead the way through the building.

"Zira?" My brother asked a few minutes later, reaching out for her as he spoke and she quickly offered him her hand so he'd know where she was, "Are you sure he can't _hear_ us?" He added seriously.

"I'm not as _strong_ as my brother, but I can keep that much contained until we find him," She answered sternly, "As far as he's concerned, you're in dream land."

"I have to admit I'm _really_ glad you're on our side," He told her with another smile, before putting his hand on my shell again and I began to quietly lead him through the halls.

* * *

The Monkeys have stolen my punctuality... -_-

Reviews Please


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

(Donnie's POV)

Remaining undetected as we searched for the _center_ of the complex, knowing that the Barron had to be there, was proving to be harder than we expected. Around every corner the man had more guards, some of them even _generals,_ and on top of that Leo was forced to rely on me to a usually _unnecessary_ degree.

We'd all been trained to move and fight in a blinded state, but my brother was also still fighting off the Barron's influence, so he didn't have enough free thought to put into the action of fending for himself.

"Is he going to be any help when we actually _do_ find my brother?" Zira whispered in my ear some time later.

"You know he can _hear_ you, right?" I told her in a level tone, causing her to look at Leo who was obviously not too happy with her remark.

"Sorry, it's just –" She started again, but he quickly raised a hand to stop her.

"No, you're right," He admitted, "I knew this wouldn't be easy, but it's taking everything I have just to hold him off. I _can't_ fight him with you; I'll only be a _liability_."

"We _prepared_ for that, Leo," I told him truthfully.

"I know, but I was still hoping we wouldn't have to go to plan B so _soon_ ," He muttered sourly.

"Then maybe you'll feel better to know that plan B's already started itself," Zira added and I quickly turned to find her pointing down the hall where half a dozen guards had been knocked unconscious with a little help from Raph, Mikey and the general, who I'd learned went by the name Usagi.

"Well, if the Barron didn't know we were here _before_ he certainly does _now_ ," I told them sternly, causing my brothers to shrug sheepishly and Usagi to grip his sword like he was suddenly ashamed of himself.

"I wasn't sure how much longer we could keep him in the dark anyway," Leo admitted, standing noticeably straighter now that Raph and Mikey were close enough to help him fight off the nano bots attempting to control him, "Plan B it is," He added before handing out our orders.

"Donnie, Zira – I want you to disable the Barron's computers," He stated seriously.

"But –" Zira tried to complain, but he was having none of it.

"No buts, there's never a guarantee a victory and this way even if we _loose_ , we'll have weakened him," He proclaimed truthfully and I nodded in agreement before pulling Zira along with me as we went to find the control room.

…

( _3_ _rd_ _:_ )

"Ya gonna be okay?" Raph asked Leo as they made their way through the building, following Usagi in the hopes that what little memory he had of his work with the Barron would led them to their enemy.

"I'll be fine," Leo answered tiredly, "Once we take him down," He added more to himself than his brother, but Raph heard it anyway and couldn't help but agree. After all he knew _exactly_ what his brother was going through.

"Here," Usagi proclaimed a few minutes later and they promptly stopped in front of a set of large double sliding doors, "But I don't know the code," He admitted as he activated the little computer on the wall, which would have opened the door.

"I do," Raph announced with a grin as he cracked his knuckles before forcing everyone to scatter as he threw his fist into the metal so hard that it left a massive dent. A few more punches and some bending later, he'd managed to make a hole in the door big enough for them to get through before standing back and motioned to them with a smile that they could go first.

"I'm impressed," Usagi revealed taking a quick moment to study the sheets of metal around him as he entered behind Leo and Mikey, only to realize that the door had been over 5 feet thick.

"Shit," Raph swore in response, though not because he'd been praised, it was instead due to the fact that the Barron was standing in the middle of the room with such a relaxed stance that proved he had been _waiting_ for them.

"Well," Mikey sighed dejectedly, "So much for the element of surprise."

…

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Donnie chanted as he skidded to a stop in front of a random door before checking his gantlet to insure they were in the right place, "This is it," He announced before moving to break into the computer and open the door while Zira watched the hall for any uninvited guests.

"Got it," He called once he'd reprogrammed the lock into the open position and quickly walked into the room as the barricade slid away to find exactly what he was looking for.

However, as he started work on the computer to have it find and destroy anything he could Zira quickly demanded his attention again.

"What?" He demanded in annoyance once she had called his name two separate times only to turn and find her staring at one of the hundreds of frozen tubes of strange green liquid that took up space in an adjacent room.

He had assumed they were to keep the super computer cooled, but judging from the horrified look on her face he was starting to think he had been wrong.

"Zira?" He asked kindly, forgetting his mission for a moment to walk over and make sure she was okay, which is how he came to see the small space of frost that she had wiped away to reveal a _face_.

But not just any face, it was the face of an _Algon_.

…

"I admit; I did not expect such boldness," The Barron proclaimed as he calmly took in the three turtles and rabbit before him, "But it ends here."

"We'll see," Raph threatened as he twirled his sai into his hands and charged. However, the man just casually slid out of the way like he found the attempt _boring_ at best.

"Mikey?" Leo ordered quietly, as he finally opened his eyes to take in their opponent, having no reason to keep them closed any more, as he could feel that the man was no longer trying to break into his mind.

"Can you see him?" He demanded quickly, knowing that his little brother was the only one of them that had not yet been contaminated by the nano bots, and needed to make sure that what they were seeing wasn't just a vision brought on by that fact.

"Yeah," He announced as he watched the Barron dance around their brother's next few attacks, "But – something's _up_ ," He added questionably, "But I don't know _what_ ," He admitted, leaving Leo to nod, before drawing his own weapons and charged into the fight along side Usagi.

Together, the two swordsmen and the sai welder were able to force the man back, trying to get him into position for Mikey to take him out, but that wasn't to say it didn't still look like they were just being _played_ _with_.

"Leonardo," Usagi called to him after a minute, getting the turtle's attention, "I do not believe this is working."

"Yeah, neither do I," He agreed watching as his brother's continued attempting to hit the man, trying desperately to make out what was giving the Barron his power, and as if on Q the answer came in the form of his phone ringing, prompting him to pick up to find that it was Donnie.

"Get away from him!" Donnie ordered loudly, making his leader's heart freeze.

"Fall back," He commanded Mike and Raph immediately, causing them to start, but did as he said, leaving the man to watch them with a curious smile, "Donnie, what's going on?" He demanded of the phone.

"He's absorbing the _abilities_ of other Algons," His missing brother proclaimed from the other end, "He's got _hundreds_ of them here, all hooked up to a super computer. I'll bet anything it's _downloading_ their minds, allowing him to use their powers for himself. You _can't_ fight something like that Leo."

"Then how do we stop him?" Leo asked as he and his team backed up a few steps so they weren't as close to the creature in the room they were beginning to think wasn't even the Barron at all.

Not _anymore_.

"I don't know," Donnie admitted as Leo clearly heard him typing on a keyboard, "I can't disconnect them, I can't do _anything_ to this computer Leo, not without _killing them_ ," He announced in a panic.

"Damnit," Leo swore under his breath as his body clenched in response to this, however, before he could think his way around this new development a crash from the other side of the phone caught his attention.

"Donnie?" He asked the device as he heard a series of fighting sounds coming from the speaker, "Donnie!" He ordered, but the only answer he got was for the line to go dead.

"Damnit," He yelled again as he looked back at the Barron to find him obviously well aware of what was going on.

He thought he'd made the perfect plan; that they could take the man down while he was distracted, but it was beginning to look like they had overplayed their hand.

* * *

Reviews Please

XD


	11. Chapter 10

Here's the Final Chapter of Part 8

I don't own TMNT

* * *

Chapter 10:

( _Donnie's POV_ )

"I don't know," I admitted into my phone as I started to look for a way to free the Algons, but even if I freed their bodies, there minds would remain trapped inside the computer, which also meant that I couldn't sabotage the thing like originally planned, as it would destroy them all.

"I can't disconnect them," I started again as I pulled away from the keyboard to look around the room in desperation, "I can't do _anything_ to this computer, Leo, not without _killing them_ ," I announced in a panic, causing him to swear into the phone. However, before either one of us could say something else the door to the room suddenly _exploded_.

In a matter of seconds Zira and I had Black Gators up to our ears, but before I could even pull out my staff to fight them a strange _force_ suddenly picked me up and threw me into a wall, leaving my phone to clatter across the floor.

Looking up, I found one of the Gators raising his hand I my direction and I immediately knew what had happened.

"Dammit, we got _telepathy_ ," Zira announced as she too was thrown into the wall opposite me.

"I noticed," I informed her sourly, using the wall to pick myself up again, before pausing as I heard Leo's voice call my name, only to look around and watch my phone float a few feet above the ground before collapsing in on itself as if crushed by an invisible hand.

I growled through my teeth as I finally retrieved my staff and attempted to charge the man while he was distracted, but I quickly found my feet leaving the floor again as I was picked up and thrown back.

However, this time I was ready and turned my body to push off the wall with my legs and propel myself forward like this was nothing but a test in overcoming anti-gravity. Using my momentum, I pushed off several of the pillars of frozen liquid before reaching the telepath and promptly kicked him in the face, which allowed me to finally touch back down on the ground.

I immediately crouched to all fours as another Gator shot at me, causing the beam of energy to whiz over my head before I came back up to knock him out as well.

"Zira, we gotta go," I called as I fought my way back to the door.

"Ya _think_?" She berated as I looked over to find her jumping onto the shoulders of one of our larger enemies and started hopping from one Gator to the next to make her way toward me, all the while taking shots at anyone that tried to stop her and knocking others out with her tail.

"What about –" She started to ask when she finally arrived back at my side, but I didn't need her to finish that question to know exactly what was on her mind.

"We'll come back for them, I promise," I informed her as I quickly led the way back out into the hall, only to find our get away blocked from all sides by an army of Black Gators.

"I don't think you _will_ ," A voice told me and I turned toward it, only for my eyes to widen as I realized – it was the _Barron_?

"What?" I asked in shock, my _brothers_ were fighting the Barron, how could he be _here_ too?

The Algon didn't seem too interested in answering my question as he just smiled before controlling his troops again and caused them to charge at us.

"Zeke!" Zira called toward him angrily, obviously prepared to take her revenge right there and now, but I quickly pulled her back and forced her to run in the other direction as something told me it wouldn't do her much good.

That _wasn't_ her brother.

"What the hell is going on here?" I demanded as we jumped and weaved our way through the battalion of Black Gators in our way, before bolting down the hallway behind them in an attempt to find an escape route back to Leo and the others.

"How many _Barron's_ arethere?" I added sourly as we finally had some room to think.

"Just _one_ ," Zira announced sternly, "He's probably made _clones_ of himself for times like this, but he's _gotta_ be somewhere close by." It was unfortunate that this information was too little too late by this point, but the mission wasn't lost yet, we just needed a plan C.

However, it didn't look like the Barron was going to make it easy for us, as we rounded a corner only to find our feet leaving the floor once again as a new telepath stood in our path and he promptly threw us into another wall so hard that I was seeing stars for a moment.

I tried to get up and fight him as I had done the other, but this one was clearly a lot stronger and lot better than his friend, as I promptly found myself forced to my knees with my hands twisted behind my back and my head forced upward so I could see the Barron's clone approaching us again.

I struggled against the invisible hold, but that only made it push down harder, nearly crushing me as it held me in place.

"It is _unfortunate_ that you can't be controlled. You would have made an ostentatious general," He proclaimed with a smile as he stared me down, though I really couldn't tell if that was a compliment or an insult.

"And you, dear sister," He added as he turned to Zira next, and she growled at him as she was forced to a similar position to my own, "It would seem that I need to keep you _safe_." He declared snobbishly.

"Go to hell!" She informed him, but he only smiled, before turning to walk away again, leaving one of his generals to walk up and point his gun at my head.

"No!" Zira cried trying to get free, but the telepath only tightened his hold and before I could even really comprehend what was happening, a shot rang throughout the hall.

I flinched in response even though I continued to stare the man down bravely, only for him to suddenly become _blurred_ , at first I thought that meant I had actually been shot, but than the blur became a _wall_ of translucent gold.

Looking up at it in shock, I started to see a _picture_ form inside the energy until I realized I was looking at an image of _Algernon_. The Barron obviously saw him too as he'd stopped walking away to look back in obvious fear while his father glared down at him.

"You will not harm them," Algernon declared in an echoing voice that radiated off the walls, "Not by _your_ hand or any hand you _command_ ," He finished loudly while simultaneously sweeping his arm in a wide arch; causing a sudden attack of wind and energy to force the Barron and his men back so violently that when they finally hit a wall, most where went straight _through_ it.

I was honestly so shocked that all I could do was stare at the scene for a minute as Zira and I were finally freed from the telepath's hold, but my attention was quickly commanded by Algernon again as he turned to look at me.

" _Run_!" He ordered kindly and I immediately snapped out of my daze before turning to grab Zira and ran down the hall as fast as I could; leaving her father to cover my back.

…

( _3_ _rd_ _:_ )

Leo made sure his team, plus Usagi, stayed as far away from the Barron as possible, while still looking for a way to take him down, but the man wasn't making it very easy for them, as his speed and reflexes were proving to be just too much for them to avoid.

Which was how they found themselves cornered on the wall opposite the door, where they were about to perform a charge, in one last ditch attempt to get past him and back into the hall where they could escape when the Barron suddenly – _stopped_.

From the look on his face Leo could tell something had happened that positively _scared_ the man, as the look of horror on his face was more than enough to prove that he _did_ have a weakness.

Leo could only hope that whatever it was; was on _their_ side as he used the distraction to attack and his sword was _finally_ able to make contact. However, before he could swing again the room was suddenly hit with something he could only describe as a _shock-wave_ , which set them all sprawling to the floor.

Thankfully, the attack didn't hit the turtles or Usagi nearly as hard as it hit the Barron as the man was throw into a wall with such force that his body was nearly crushed. But, just when Leo was beginning to think they had won, something unexpected happened and he watched in confusion as the Barron dissolved into a puddle of _black goo_.

"What?" He demanded, before the horror of the event caught up to him and he realized that whatever that creature had been – it _wasn't_ the Barron.

"You gotta be _kiddin'_ me," Raph complained as he came to the same conclusion, however, before they could try to make sense of it, their instincts had them all turning toward the door with their weapons out as a new presence announced itself.

"Donnie," Leo called in relief as his missing brother and Zira entered the room, looking around as if trying to figure out where the Barron had gone.

"It's a _clone_ ," Donnie informed them sternly, "We need to find the _real_ one, he's _weakened_. We can take him down if we _find_ him."

Leo was about to answer him, when a voice he was beginning to know all too well announced itself over an intercom.

"That _won't_ be happening," The Barron ordered in an oddly disheveled and undignified tone, clearly he wasn't happy with the turn of events and was obviously prepared to prove it, for at that moment a new set of doors suddenly slammed shut over the hole in the other one, trapping them in the room.

"No!" Raph called, charging the thing and attempted to force them open before becoming distracted by the room as it started to light up and _hum_. "Oh, shit," He swore as they all realized that they weren't in a room – they were in a _machine_.

"We gotta get out of here," Leo ordered as they all threw their weight into the door, trying to get free, as the area started filling with energy that crackled and jumped as it charged.

"I may not be able to harm you," The Barron added angrily as the machine finally activated, leaving them to realize that they had run out of time, "But I know someone who _can_."

…

They clenched their teeth in agony as they were suddenly teleported somewhere they clearly didn't want to go through obviously _unnatural_ as the process caused them so much pain that when they finally hit the ground again they could barely move, which turned out to be a _really_ bad thing as they looked up to find themselves completely surrounded by _foot ninja_.

"No," Leo whispered as he realized where they were and looked around as a man they all knew walked forward to stare down at them from behind his helmet, " _Shredder_ ," He added in panic causing their life long enemy to laugh cruelly before responding.

"Welcome back."

The End

* * *

O.O

Stay turned for Part 9

"The Chains We Break"


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